Formulaic 'Core' loses its steam before reaching destination

By Marshall Fine
The (Westchester, N.Y.) Journal News

THE CORE (Rated PG-13) Two Stars (Fair) A disaster movie about scientists who have to save the Earth by taking a trip to its core is as silly as it sounds — even though the first half actually has some promise. Starring Aaron Eckhart, Hilary Swank, Stanley Tucci. Directed by Jon Amiel. Paramount Pictures, 95 minutes.

Still, this overcooked blend of "Journey to the Center of the Earth" and "Fantastic Voyage" has surprises in its first half that will keep you watching because it understands the rules. This is a disaster movie that keeps tightly focused on the microcosm of the rescue team and not the big picture of Earth in crisis.

That is a key dictum for making a disaster movie that works to any degree. You won't care about saving humanity if you don't care about the survival of the saviors whose mission we're supposed to follow.

"The Core" also calls to mind "Independence Day" in its willingness to pulverize world-famous landmarks (the Coliseum in Rome, for starters) for the sheer spectacle of it. At heart, however, this is a story about an intrepid band of scientists racing the clock to keep the planet from burning up.

The culprit is not the vanishing ozone layer but a disturbance in the Earth's electro-magnetic field, which encircles and protects the world. Once it disappears, the planet will be naked to deadly microwaves and other cosmic rays.

The problem is that the core of the Earth has stopped spinning, which is what is causing the electro-magnetic field to deteriorate, resulting in massive electrical super storms. It's up to a diverse group of scientists to board a rock-boring submarine and drill to the Earth's core, where they'll set it spinning again by jump-starting it with nuclear devices.

Most of the fun here comes from the tart chatter between the heroes, including a humble geophysicist (Aaron Eckhart), a snotty science superstar (Stanley Tucci) and the tough female astronaut (Hilary Swank), who is the vehicle's co-pilot and longs for her own command.

Once writers Cooper Layne and John Rogers get down to the business of killing off the crewmembers as the mission gets increasingly tougher, the script loses the little bit of snap it contained.

The actors give it plenty of energy, however, particularly Tucci as the flappable snob who is the butt of many jokes. The rest of the performances can be described charitably as professional.

"The Core" is perversely amusing for its first 45 minutes. Unfortunately, that's also when the action truly starts. Perhaps you can amuse yourself by placing bets on who will survive, except that's also pretty obvious.

Rated PG-13 for violence, profanity.