"2012"

Rated PG-13
2 hour 40 minutes

Starring: John Cusack, Amanda Peet, Danny Glover, Chiwetel Ejofor, Woody Harrelson, Oliver Platt

Are you ready for the end of the world? Prepare yourself for a wild ride of cataclysmic proportions carried along by as simpleminded a storyline as the writers could possibly dumb down. Billions of people will die, but who cares when it's really all about John Cusack, his ex-wife and their two kids?

Director Roland Emmerich falls back on the lowest common denominator as he rolls out his arsenal of computer generated disaster effect. The cynical sub-plot of a government cover-up, they knew this was coming all the time, gets completely overshadowed by the insipid, save your own skin antics of Cusack and his father knows best family style wisdom.

Cusack's family might also have perished along with the facing billions of victims, if he hadn't stumbled over Woody Harrelson, the real deal of a deranged prophet.

For moviegoers who get off on mass destruction, "2012" provides you with the time of your life. Remember, this isn't the first time that Director Roland Emmerich's destroyed the world. But this time he really puts his heart and soul into it, creating a thrill a minute theme park atmosphere.

"2012" has all the ups and downs of almost every disaster epic made since the 1970's. It's visually entertaining but it's got an insipid story dooming the movie to a lowly 2 stars. "2012" is hardly an earth shattering experience.