ThiefHott Too much of everything

PlatinumRead Just so...so bad

Curapedi I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

Phillipa Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

Leofwine_draca END OF THE WORLD is your usual bog-standard SyFy Channel disaster movie that perhaps feels even more generic than all the others put together. It's directed by the prolific Steven R. Monroe and written by Jason Bourque, who also directed his fair share of other numerous similar low-budget disaster movies.The one thing END OF THE WORLD does differently is to self-reference other movies in the genre, sometimes from the same studio and sometimes better-known efforts. Brad Dourif plays the crazy old-timer who might just have the knowledge to tackle what's going on, and there's a rather ingenious clip from ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST utilised at one point, which was rather neatly done.Otherwise it's business as usual, with a bunch of stock characters, failing actors, and unfunny humour. The CGI effects of the solar flare attacks are as non-impressive as ever, and the various disaster scenes lack the kind of oomph you'd expect. It turns out that the END OF THE WORLD finishes with a fizzle rather than a bang.

ersinkdotcom I don't know why, but for some reason I've been going through a disaster movie phase this past month. It started out with "Airport '77" and escalated quickly through the 1970s to the 1990s and beyond. I hit as many of the sub-genres along the way as I could by watching "The Towering Inferno," "Meteor," "Daylight," "Sharknado" and more. Needless to say, it wasn't hard for me to get into the zone when I received Anchor Bay Entertainment and SyFy Channel's "End of the World."A video store owner (Greg Grunberg) and his film geek buddy (Neil Graston) find they're the key to saving the world when an electrically- fueled storm of dust and lightning bursts pound the Earth. The two unlikely heroes use their previously useless knowledge of disaster film scenarios to discover a way to save the planet from certain doom. At the same time, they must lead a group of friends to safety while fighting their way through gangs of survivors trying to steal their van and supplies for themselves.The back of the DVD cover has a quote stating, "The best film that I've ever seen on SyFy!" I would have to side with Through the Shattered Lens' Lisa Bowman that "End of the World" is one of the better straight- to-cable movies my eyes have gazed upon. The story really isn't anything new, but is made tolerable through characters that are both likable and easy to hate depending on what their specific role in the movie demands of them.The casting director for "End of the World" kept their end of the bargain by packing the movie full of familiar genre faces for various audiences to grab on to. Greg Grunberg ("Heroes") and Neil Grayston ("Eureka") play the leads. They trade sci-fi banter and film quotes that make hardcore geeks feel like they're in on a joke not every viewer will get. Brad Dourif ("The Lord of the Rings," "The Exorcist III," and every independent horror or sci-fi project he has time to be in) plays the crazy doctor who holds the answer to how to stop Armageddon from happening. Too bad he's only in the movie long enough to act nuts for five or ten minutes and then die.The special effects are as good as you can expect from low-budget fare like "End of the World." The CGI team does what they can with the money they've been given. The way the unfortunate folks who get hit by the electrical pulsing meteorites explode more than make up for how animated the effects might look."End of the World" is rated PG-13 for sci-fi action and some disturbing images. There are some scenes where people explode in a splash of digital gore, but nothing out of the ordinary for these types of movies. I recall some bad language spread throughout as well."End of the World" is an adequate entry into the sci-fi and disaster film genres. It will suffice for those who have burned through all the other movies of its type and are looking for something new to watch. It's further made tolerable through the wink-wink-nudge dialogue traded between its two nerdy lead characters. If you're looking for something to pass the time on a Saturday night, I would recommend this for folks who enjoy a good grade-C flick.

joantytler I'm sorry others don't seem to like this movie, but I did! There isn't a part of it I don't like. It's funny and cute. I think ALL the cast was good . . . Greg Grunberg was awesome, funny, switching to serious when he had to. Neil Grayson was fabulous, and reminded me a bit of Art Carney; he seemed to end up in the middle of everything. Caroline was terrific , using her eyes and beautiful smile to the fullest. Mark was great - a true villain that one wants to shake. Brad Dourif played very well the frustrated, anxious expert, unable to get through to his captors. Even Serge Houde played his part superbly. I think his "I like it" is classic. To me, all the cast did marvelously . . . their acting drew me right in. Maybe others see technical problems, but I watch this any time I get a chance. The more I see it, the more I like it.

Michael_Elliott End of the World (2013) * 1/2 (out of 4) SyFy film has a couple video store clerks (and one of their wives) having to put their knowledge of disaster movies to the ultimate test when the end of the world approaches. When some sort of mysterious explosions start dropping from the skies, the three head off to find an expert (Brad Dourif) who is locked up in a mental hospital. I'll give END OF THE WORLD credit for at least trying to do something different but unfortunately it really doesn't add up to much. The biggest problem with this movie is the low-budget, which just doesn't really allow it to be taken that serious. I think with a higher budget and a re-write of the screenplay then we might have had something much better. As is, the film has some interesting moments and a couple good performances but that's it. One good thing is the constant references to other science fiction movies, which was somewhat fun for film buffs. I also enjoyed the performances for the most part. Caroline Cave is good in the role of the wife and we also get nice work from Greg Grunberg and Neil Grayston. I also enjoyed seeing Dourif who goes wildly over-the-top but in a fun way. The special effects are pretty much what you'd expect from a low-budget film like this but they were still much better than what you typical see on SyFy. Back to the problems, the screenplay just isn't strong enough to make us believe the situation these characters are in. Not once did I buy into the "end of the world" and there's really not any drama or suspense anywhere. I know this is mostly a comedy about these two video store clerks but we needed something else.