"Earthquake" is another of the many 1970's disaster films that seemed to hit theaters and drive-ins on a bi-weekly basis. The one difference between this film and all the others was Sensurround, which consisted of 4 large boxes positioning 2 on either side of the screen and 2 more on either side in the very back. Every time a quake hit the machines would rumble causing the theater to shake. In Chicago there were reports that the United Artists theater, one of the many long gone and forgotten movie palaces, actually had parts of the ceiling fall during performances which, no doubt, made it all the more real for the patrons. The results were quite effective and almost made the movie worth seeing. To sit and watch it on television is to see yet another silly disaster movie that had some decent special effects.
"Earthquake" boasted the usual star studded cast headed by Charlton Heston and George Kennedy who did double duty that fall by also saving lives in "Airport 1975." Also along for the ride are Genevieve Bujold, Ava Gardner, Lorne Greene (hilariously cast as Gardner's father of all people, Marjoe Gortner, Richard Roundtree, Barry Sullivan, Lloyd Nolan and others. Of course the film has to set up these characters and their individual (and mostly boring) stories before we get to the good stuff. When the big quake does hit the film takes off for a while but then grinds to a halt as the survivors look for one another and try to stay alive. It's a routine film that is an okay time waster but nothing more.
"Earthquake" boasted the usual star studded cast headed by Charlton Heston and George Kennedy who did double duty that fall by also saving lives in "Airport 1975." Also along for the ride are Genevieve Bujold, Ava Gardner, Lorne Greene (hilariously cast as Gardner's father of all people, Marjoe Gortner, Richard Roundtree, Barry Sullivan, Lloyd Nolan and others. Of course the film has to set up these characters and their individual (and mostly boring) stories before we get to the good stuff. When the big quake does hit the film takes off for a while but then grinds to a halt as the survivors look for one another and try to stay alive. It's a routine film that is an okay time waster but nothing more.