The China Syndrome (1979) - October 14, 2014 - Blu-ray Forum

Akijama · 07-02-2014, 12:40 PM

IMDB - 7.4 ( 17,704 users )

Rotten Tomatoes - 83% ( 29 reviews counted )

Quote:

Synopsis: Nominated for four Academy Awards including Best Actor and Actress (Jack Lemmon, Best Actor; Jane Fonda, Best Actress–1979), THE CHINA SYNDROME stars Jane Fonda, Jack Lemmon and Michael Douglas in the "superbly suspenseful, expertly crafted, entirely riveting" (Richard Schickel, Time) white-knuckle thriller that famously predicted Three Mile Island meltdown, a nuclear disaster that occurred just 12 days after the film's theatrical release.

It started as just another assignment. Reporter Kimberly Wells (Jand Fonda) and cameraman Richard Adams (Michael Douglas) were covering the daily routine at a Los Angeles power plant when the unthinkable occurred – a nuclear accident that could have wiped out Southern California. And Richard caught it all on tape. When their TV station refuses to air the footage, Wells and Adams recruit plant supervisor Jack Godell (Jack Lemmon) to expose the terrifying truth: the facility is a ticking time bomb. But with millions of dollars at stake, company officials cannot let the story break. When the trio attempts to broadcast live from the plant's control room, the utility company does everything in its power to silence Godell permanently, as the world watches.

Courtesy of Image Entertainment

Source

PowellPressburger · 07-02-2014, 12:45 PM

Nice! I've been debating importing this title. Glad to see it is finally getting a U.S. release. Day 1 purchase for sure.

MifuneFan · 07-02-2014, 12:52 PM

Great news. I was afraid TT would have gotten this one. This is a great movie, very underrated.

benbess · 07-02-2014, 04:38 PM

Finally! I love this movie.

One of Jack Lemmon's greatest performances. And I think it is Jane Fonda's greatest. And Michael Douglas is a hoot.

In some ways, it's very much a trip to 1979, but actually the science in it is almost always quite accurate. And as we saw in Japan just a few years ago, it's more relevant than ever.

klauswhereareyou · 07-02-2014, 04:40 PM

Wilford Brimley

benbess · 07-02-2014, 04:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by klauswhereareyou

Wilford Brimley

Yes! And just before The Thing too. He's great.

Akijama · 07-03-2014, 01:50 AM

Amazon pre-order: http://www.amazon.com/China-Syndrome...352078&sr=1-26

Saucerful · 07-03-2014, 03:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PowellPressburger

Nice! I've been debating importing this title. Glad to see it is finally getting a U.S. release. Day 1 purchase for sure.

Wow... I was about to pull the trigger on the German release. I'm glad I waited.

Arkadin · 07-03-2014, 12:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Saucerful

Wow... I was about to pull the trigger on the German release. I'm glad I waited.

that version is from Sony, so could be better actually.
you never know if the Image will be the exact same encode or not even though acquired from Sony.

MifuneFan · 07-03-2014, 01:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arkadin

that version is from Sony, so could be better actually.
you never know if the Image will be the exact same encode or not even though acquired from Sony.

It was acquired from Sony. I'd be surprised if there's any significant differences.

javi92 · 07-03-2014, 01:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MifuneFan

It was acquired from Sony. I'd be surprised if there's any significant differences.

It will probably be the same, but after The Lady from Shanghai debacle with TCM (they did end up mostly fixing it with the second version), I'm not sure anything can be taken for granted.

slimdude · 07-03-2014, 01:49 PM

I've found the German release for only $6.00 at a used local media store.

Darth Marcus · 07-03-2014, 01:54 PM

I haven't seen the entire film, but I caught the last 20 minutes or so on TV one day and holy crap is it intense! I will be picking this up!

benbess · 07-03-2014, 01:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Darth Marcus

I haven't seen the entire film, but I caught the last 20 minutes or so on TV one day and holy crap is it intense! I will be picking this up!

You think the first 20 minutes are intense. Wait until the last 45. Stunning. I walked out of the theater in 1979 in a state of shock.

In the news at the time, everyone said what was in the movie was impossible. Guess what. Minus a few elements that I won't reveal, almost exactly the same thing happened at Three Mile Island just a couple of weeks later. They actually took the trouble to get the science and technology right in this movie.

It works as drama. That's the most important thing. But it's not BS like some other disaster movies.

Saucerful · 07-03-2014, 03:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arkadin

that version is from Sony, so could be better actually.
you never know if the Image will be the exact same encode or not even though acquired from Sony.

That's true, there may be differences. But then at least I'll have the choice. If the EU release is significantly better, I might spring for that one. I would just be annoyed if I ended up with the EU release only to find that the US one was just as good and half the price.

JaseT · 07-03-2014, 04:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by benbess

You think the first 20 minutes are intense. Wait until the last 45. Stunning. I walked out of the theater in 1979 in a state of shock.

In the news at the time, everyone said what was in the movie was impossible. Guess what. Minus a few elements that I won't reveal, almost exactly the same thing happened at Three Mile Island just a couple of weeks later. They actually took the trouble to get the science and technology right in this movie.

It works as drama. That's the most important thing. But it's not BS like some other disaster movies.

He said the LAST 20 minutes

I will be buying this one for sure!

Pirate King · 07-03-2014, 05:40 PM

I will add this one to my collection. Jack Lemmon gives a great performance. In fact, the performances from the entire cast is very strong. Great story. Great build-up. The last part of the film is riveting.

Count Orlok · 07-04-2014, 06:50 AM

Great news for those that chose not to import. I decided to import the German disc a month or so ago. Impressive AQ and PQ. Looks like the features are the same. If it's the same transfer, you won't be disappointed.

UseY0ur1llusi0n · 07-04-2014, 08:27 AM

Cool. The German release has some pretty awful cover art.

Seymour · 07-04-2014, 09:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by UseY0ur1llusi0n

Cool. The German release has some pretty awful cover art.

Here's the US DVD art:

Here's the German BD art:

What's the difference?

07-02-2014, 12:52 PM	#3
MifuneFan Blu-ray Emperor Top contributor Member since:Mar 2012 Location:New York City 4K collection:27 Blu-ray collection:1143 Trading Score:69	Great news. I was afraid TT would have gotten this one. This is a great movie, very underrated. Last edited by MifuneFan; 07-02-2014 at 12:56 PM.

07-02-2014, 04:38 PM	#4
benbess Blu-ray Guru Member since:Aug 2009 Location:Louisville, KY Blu-ray reviews: 65	Finally! I love this movie. One of Jack Lemmon's greatest performances. And I think it is Jane Fonda's greatest. And Michael Douglas is a hoot. In some ways, it's very much a trip to 1979, but actually the science in it is almost always quite accurate. And as we saw in Japan just a few years ago, it's more relevant than ever. Last edited by benbess; 07-02-2014 at 04:40 PM.

07-03-2014, 01:49 PM	#12
slimdude Banned Member since:Apr 2009 4K collection:- Blu-ray collection:- DVD collection:- Blu-ray reviews:8	I've found the German release for only $6.00 at a used local media store. Last edited by slimdude; 07-03-2014 at 01:53 PM.

07-02-2014, 12:45 PM	#2
PowellPressburger Blu-ray Count Top contributor Member since:Aug 2007 Location:DIFFERENT PLACES! Minneapolis 4K collection:991 Blu-ray collection:3676 DVD collection:359 Blu-ray reviews: 51 Trading Score:297	Nice! I've been debating importing this title. Glad to see it is finally getting a U.S. release. Day 1 purchase for sure.

07-02-2014, 04:40 PM	#5
klauswhereareyou Blu-ray Knight Member since:Mar 2012 4K collection:232 Blu-ray collection:2199 Digital collection:22 Prime collection:1	Wilford Brimley

07-03-2014, 01:50 AM	#7
Akijama Banned Top contributor Member since:Oct 2011	Amazon pre-order: http://www.amazon.com/China-Syndrome...352078&sr=1-26

07-03-2014, 01:54 PM	#13
Darth Marcus Blu-ray Baron Top contributor Member since:May 2011 Location:Chapel Hill, NC 4K collection:1489 Blu-ray collection:1745 DVD collection:1 Blu-ray reviews: 1 Trading Score:76	I haven't seen the entire film, but I caught the last 20 minutes or so on TV one day and holy crap is it intense! I will be picking this up!

07-03-2014, 05:40 PM	#17
Pirate King Blu-ray Guru Member since:Jun 2008 Location:Texas Home Theater Gallery:25 Blu-ray collection:1851 Blu-ray reviews: 4	I will add this one to my collection. Jack Lemmon gives a great performance. In fact, the performances from the entire cast is very strong. Great story. Great build-up. The last part of the film is riveting.

07-04-2014, 06:50 AM	#18
Count Orlok Blu-ray Ninja Top contributor Member since:Sep 2012 Location:41.7325° N, 49.9469° W Home Theater Gallery:42 4K collection:383 Blu-ray collection:2416 DVD collection:88 MA collection:211 Digital collection:421 iTunes collection:6 Blu-ray reviews: 10 Trading Score:182	Great news for those that chose not to import. I decided to import the German disc a month or so ago. Impressive AQ and PQ. Looks like the features are the same. If it's the same transfer, you won't be disappointed.

07-04-2014, 08:27 AM	#19
UseY0ur1llusi0n Banned Top contributor Member since:Oct 2013 4K collection:- Blu-ray collection:- DVD collection:- Trading Score:4	Cool. The German release has some pretty awful cover art.

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