The Final Countdown (1980)

Overrated and overhyped

Must See Movie...

I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Great wee sci-if film with so much to come from the ' what if ' scenario. Good for it's time of release but just watched it again and far ahead of it's time & poses so many relevant questions. If remade I agree with my fellow reviewer Gold 5 that this could be absolutely terrific! Everyone excellent in their roles with Martin Sheen outstanding as always. Nice direction & cinematography too. 8 out of 10.

Capt. Matthew Yelland (Kirk Douglas) is in command of the American nuclear aircraft carrier USS Nimitz. Warren Lasky (Martin Sheen) is on a special assignment from the DOD. He has a mysterious benefactor Richard Tideman who helped design the ship. They go out to sea and is caught in an unusual storm that sends them back in time to right before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Laurel Scott (Katharine Ross) is the assistant to Senator Samuel Chapman (Charles Durning). They are on a yacht attacked by the Japanese. Cdr. Owens (James Farentino) is the lead jet pilot.There is some great footage of an aircraft carrier and real fighters. This is most notable for all the real work considering this is pre-CGI. Everything is in camera. It's probably the only time that jet fighters get into a dogfight with propeller fighters on screen. When the music comes up, it's all done with so much energy. There is some drawback with using the regular crew as extras and Farentino isn't the most charismatic actor. I do like that they have a discussion about time travel. This is probably the second best real fighter planes movie after 'Top Gun'.

This movie had me hooked as a kid, and growing up, I've come to appreciate the nod to historical events, the aircraft on display like a time capsule, and the sci-fi plot that presents a host of interesting questions for the viewer. That, and a great musical score....I have to wonder though.....How does Yelland end up explaining the dead Marines and the body of the Japanese pilot to his superiors? His gear? The lost helicopter and crew? Not to mention, the pilots who splashed the two Zeros...what will they tell people? Also, the entire ship's crew that was told they were prepping for war with the Japs, the recon photos, the radio transmissions of old 1940's broadcasts....Yelland makes the comment at the end that "They'll never believe it", but I think in the end, there's bound to be swift reaction to what happened on that ship in the present day. I'm tossing that one up as a bit of a good though, because I think the intention of the filmmakers was that they come back with no real proof that it ever happened outside of the dog.....and the curious case of Mr. Tideman.Even historical evidence remains, as there's the downed Zeros in what is probably shallow waters, and the remains of the helicopter that exploded off the island, and also the equipment/supplies left behind that were intended for the Senator and the girl?

I have loved this film since first seeing it on t.v. in the early 1980s.Not only does it have a great cast (Kirk Douglas, Martin Sheen, Charles Durning), the footage of the carrier & its airwing...and the flight scenes is truly awe-inspiring.The story - based on the novel by the super-intelligent Martin Caidin (who created The Six Million Dollar Man) was a piece of brilliant sci-fi and "historical conundrum".The idea of (in 1980) a modern-day nuclear-powered aircraft carrier being time-warped to December 6, 1941, less than 24 hours before the Imperial Japanese Navy attacks the U.S. fleet at Pearl Harbor - and the commanding officers (and a brilliant civilian military "systems analyst") trying to make sense of the situation, and deciding whether or not to change the course of history was a great idea (H.G. Wells' "The Time Machine", comes to mind).When making the fateful decision to change history, or leave things as is, the Captain (Kirk Douglas) states "This is a U.S. warship. Our job is to defend the United States of America against attack...past, present or future".If, like me, you are an avid follower of military aircraft, then you will love seeing all of the jets and helicopters that served aboard the Nimitz in the late 1970s - F-14 Tomcat, A-7 Corsair II, A-6 Intruder (various versions for attack, refueling and jamming of enemy radars), S-3 Viking Anti-Sub warfare, H-2 Hawkeye (airborne radar & communications), and the Sikorsky Sea King helo used for Search & Rescue and anti-sub warfare.One thing I wish the film did that was in the novel would have been to have more of the "technical talk" that Martin Sheen's character (Warren Lasky) used when explaining how the storm happened, and how the Captain and crew could figure it out using the technology available to them.Also, in the novel, there was much more graphic detail of what happened to the ship & her crew when they went through the storm the first time.The novel also gave a sense of closure to the Commander Owens / Richard Tideman saga that ended the film.It is for these reasons that I give the film 7 stars, instead of 8 or 9.