The Day After Tomorrow

“The Day After Tomorrow” examines what might happen if global warming and the greenhouse effect drastically changed the world’s climate. Top scientist Jack Hall (Dennis Quaid) has been warning government officials about a new ice age. Unfortunately, his dire predictions come true sooner than even he expected.
This is a disaster movie that Irwin Allen, the godfather of such pictures, would be proud of — whole city blocks, whole cities, entire communities are destroyed, and lives are lost in the millions. The film’s scenes of dangerous treks through deserted ships and even more perilous buildings recall such fondly remembered Allen productions as “The Poseidon Adventure” and “The Towering Inferno.”
Of the science in this movie I have no opinion. I am sure global warming is real, but I doubt that the cataclysm, if it comes, will come like this. It makes for a fun movie, though. Especially the parts where Americans become illegal immigrants in Mexico, and the vice president addresses the world via the Weather Channel.
But this movie has the good sense not to have man attempt to overcome nature’s wrath (the point of such films like Armageddon and The Core). Instead, it’s a given that there’s nothing we can do, so the emphasis is on survival. The knowledge that victory is impossible makes for a more compelling story, since the goal becomes intensely personal: staying alive.