Category 7: The End of the World (2005)

Film catastrophe(in both senses). The whole planet is devastated by mega-storms, hurricanes, tornadoes. All the characters, for 2 hours 49min, they fret and fuss, waiting for the end of the world. There are not missing some frogs and flies as biblical signs. To make matters worse, at the half of the movie, some villains kidnap a few young people, including the son of the main character, who tries to save the world, FEMA Director Judith Carr (Gina Gershon). The most sympathetic character is Tornado Tommy Dixon, played by the natural Randy Quaid. Other actors, including Robert Wagner, John Kapel, James Brolin, Swoosie Kurtz, Tom Skerritt and even Gina Gershon, all alike it seems they have a thick carrot stuck in their ass(I think they were aware of how bad is the script). So, it's really the end of the world? No, they changed their mind, just wanted to scare you again, like in all those catastrophic productions, they have a happy ending, as usual...

Well, lets's see: The acting is bad, the dialogs are worse, the special effects are disappointing, the plot is ridiculous, the science is flawed, the camera work is amateuristic, the cast is a let-down, the characters unlikeable, the finale underwhelming and the ending your typical American sentimental feel-good-moment.Except it didn't feel good. What a bunch of nonsense. Even though disaster movies aren't usually very good, so much more could have been done with this premise. Unfortunately, you only want to be watching is if you're stuck in bomb shelter and it's the only DVD you can play there.This really isn't worth your time, unless you're really into the disaster-movie genre.

You know, I thought CATEGORY 7: THE END OF THE WORLD was some cheesy B-movie style TV miniseries that had been made by one of the obscure cable channels when it debuted in the USA and probably seen by half a dozen people. Then I find out it bagged the highest viewing figures when it was first shown and was also nominated for an Emmy award. Er, did I see something different to everybody else? This is laughably, atrociously bad, a production that looks like it cost all of a hundred bucks and was made by a bunch of arrogant film school students. It's no different to the endless disaster movies churned out by the likes of the SyFy Channel, all of them bland, nondescript and indistinguishable from each other.CATEGORY 7 contains four episodes which show America assailed by super storms and various other natural disasters, including (randomly) an invasion of poisonous frogs. The scenes of actual disaster are limited, but they're undeniably hilarious, utilising appalling CGI to show the destruction of famous landmarks such as the Statue of Liberty and Mount Rushmore. It's like a Lego version of a Roland Emmerich movie. And, inevitably, the title is a misnomer: only the eastern seaboard of America is threatened, although apparently according to the filmmakers that's the whole world (or at least the only bit that matters).To sustain the running time, there are various sub-plots about TV evangelists, religious nuts, a terrorist group and some kidnapped kids. The dialogue is ear-gratingly routine and the performances are lacking; it's one of those productions where you sometimes feel embarrassed for the actors involved. Gina Gershon, almost unrecognisable after extensive plastic surgery, headlines, and there are minor parts for Robert Wagner, James Brolin, Tom Skerritt, and others besides. Probably the most amusing turn comes from Randy Quaid, reprising his "wacky" turn from INDEPENDENCE DAY as a storm chaser. Sadly, the only reason to watch this is as an unintentional comedy, by which virtue it's funnier than most genuine comedies in cinemas at the moment.

This One is more Ambitious than Most TV-Movies (it is a 2-parter) and has that Seventies Disaster Movie Template, Devastating Destruction for Your Rubbernecking Pleasure.Forget the Science, this is all about SFX and Easy to Understand People, Their Motivations, and Their Mindsets. There are the Regular Folks who Live in Trailer Parks that try and save the Pink Flamingos before they Abandon the Single Wide, the Seasoned Military Veteran willing to Give His Life for Country and Mankind...the Scientists who are Ahead of Their Time with Data that will Shake the Status Quo and Cause Fat Cats to Lose some of that Financial Weight, the Self Serving (not the people's servants) Politicians...the Comedy Relief Nut who is in it for the Thrill and the Giggles, and the Religious Types that Prey on Peoples Weakness and Fear so they can Live Luxurious and Ludicrous Lives with Gold Fixtures in Their Bathrooms.So Line em Up and Knock em Down as Landmarks such as the Pyramids, the Eiffel Tower and Mt. Rushmore are all Shown to be Vulnerable. So Everyone Watches these Things for the SFX that are Pretty Good...for a TV-Movie. The Most Disappointing Thing is that while this is Subtitled "The End of the World", One Guess if they Deliver on that Hyperbole.