A Disaster Movie For All Mankind

I have been a huge fan of the movie Armageddon ever since I was in high school.  I also have to admit that this movie has always made me wonder if something like this could happen in real life.  When I was younger, this movie always moved me to tears.  That is one of the reasons Armageddon is one of the biggest box office hits of all time.

Armageddon tells the story of a group of misfit oil drillers who get recruited by N.A.S.A to save the planet from an asteroid the size of Texas.  Even though it is probably one of the most scientifically inaccurate movies of all time (the "roadrunner thrust move" is a nice tongue-in-cheek joke"), it is a great action movie that actually has some beautiful character moments.  One of things that I love about this movie is the cast because, essentially, it is this great group of indie film actors who team up with Bruce Willis, who is an action movie star in his own right.

Bruce Willis plays Harry Stamper who, as the movie suggests, gets recruited because he is the best oil driller who works with the best team.  Willis shines as the smart-mouthed Harry Stamper who does things his way, and everybody agrees with him because he has been doing oil drilling his whole life.  He is the leader of the team who commands authority, and nobody does it better than Bruce Willis.

I have been a fan of director Michael Bay for years.  In my opinion, he is one of the greatest action movie directors of all time. The thing is, he does great character moments as well (the sequence where The President delivers his speech is particularly moving).  He makes movies for teenage boys, and there is nothing wrong with that.  

I love Armageddon in all of its cheesy glory.  The fact that this was only Michael Bay's third movie speaks very highly of his talents as an action film-maker.  It will be interesting to see where his career goes after he moves on from the Transformers movies.