Search - The China Syndrome on DVD

MPAA Rating: PG Content Advisory: Suitable for Children, Adult Language, Profanity Movie Release: 1979 DVD Release: 05/25/1999 Format: DVD - Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV,Pan and Scan Audio Tracks: English, Spanish Subtitles: English, Korean, Spanish, Thai SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 2 hrs 1 mins Studio: Columbia TriStar Members Wishing: 2 Genres: Thriller, Disaster Film, Paranoid Thriller See Also: The China Syndrome [Special Edition]

This gripping 1979 drama about the dangers of nuclear power carried an extra jolt when a real-life accident at the Three Mile Island nuclear plant in Pennsylvania occurred just weeks after the film opened. Kimberly Wells (Jane Fonda) is a TV reporter trying to advance from fluff pieces to harder news. Wells and cameraman Richard Adams (Michael Douglas, who also produced) are doing a story on energy when they happen to witness a near-meltdown at a local nuclear plant, averted only by quick-thinking engineer Jack Godell (Jack Lemmon). While Wells and Adams fruitlessly attempt to get the story on their station, Godell begins his own investigation and discovers that corporate greed and cost-trimming have led to potentially deadly faults in the plant's construction. He provides evidence of the faulty equipment, which could lead to another meltdown (the "China syndrome" of the title), to the station's soundman to deliver to Wells and Adams at a hearing on nuclear power. However, on the way to the hearing, the soundman is run off the road by evil henchmen, leading Godell to realize that his own life is threatened, possibly by his bosses at the plant. Driven to the edge of a breakdown, Godell takes over the plant's control room at gunpoint and demands to reveal his findings on TV. The plant's management, however, has other plans, and the facility itself is becoming dangerously unstable. Whether or not you agree with the film's clear anti-nuclear bias, its sobering message and riveting, realistic story and performances are still difficult to ignore. ~ Don Kaye, All Movie Guide

Jane Fonda - Kimberly Wells
Jack Lemmon - Jack Godell
Michael Douglas - Richard Adams
Scott Brady - Herman De Young
James Hampton - Bill Gibson
Wilford Brimley - Ted Spindler

The cautionary nuclear film The China Syndrome comes to DVD with a choice of two different images. The widescreen anamorphic transfer faithfully preserves the original theatrical aspect ratio of 1.85:1 and is preferable to the standard full-frame 1.33:1 picture. English and Spanish soundtracks are rendered in Dolby Digital Stereo; English, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Korean, and Thai subtitles are also accessible. Supplemental features include production notes, a theatrical trailer, and talent filmographies. Considering the history behind the release of this film, documentary information about the Three Mile Island disaster would have made this a truly special package. As it is, it will please fans of the film. ~ Perry Seibert, All Movie Guide