Armageddon
From TeeVeePedia, the Internet TV Encyclopedia.
Armageddon, a 1998 Made-for-TV Movie co-produced by Michael Eisner and Oliver Stone, first appeared on the ABC anthology series, The Wonderful World of Disney. A stunning departure from the nature documentaries that usually aired on The Wonderful World of Disney, "Armageddon" was a gloomy tale about the end of the Earth. "Armageddon" is considered to be Eisner's second greatest masterpiece, right behind "The Great Mouse Detective".
Cast
- Bruce Willis - Some dead guy who used to work for IASA
- President Morgan Freeman- America's President
- Haley Joel Osmond - A mysterious little boy
- Britney Spears - Eye candy
- Liv Tyler - More eye candy
- Ben Affleck - Demolitions expert
- Billy Bob Thornton - Second demolitions expert
- Charlton Heston - Narrator
Plot
After a meteor shower destroys the World Trade Center in New York City, President Freeman must find some way to protect America from certain doom from a giant meteor strike. Freeman seems at his wits' end when Osmond mysteriously appears in the Oval Office with a plan. Inspired by Willis, a former IASA worker that only he can see, Osmond outlines a plan to fill the space shuttle with explosives and use it to blow up the threatening asteroid. A crew is hastily assembled, consisting of President Freeman, Osmond, Willis, and the nation's top four demolitions experts (Affleck, Thornton, Spears, and Tyler). The Space Shuttle Enterprise is quickly prepared and launched from its top-secret base in Florida.
Once in orbit, the Enterprise attempts to dock with the space station Mir. Due to a Russian cosmonaut's failure to see a "No Smoking" sign, Mir gets destroyed, its smoldering wreckage falling on France. Running low on fuel, the Enterprise crash-lands on the asteroid, with an impact that would have killed Willis had he not already been dead. Realizing the truth, Willis uses his ghostly powers to help the crew dig an 8000-foot deep hole into the asteroid and plant the explosives. As the Enterprise lifts off from the asteroid's surface, Willis stays behind on the asteroid to detonate the charges. As the shuttle lands back on Earth, Willis presses the detonator, smashing the asteroid into 1000 little pieces.
Back on the ground, President Freeman and his crew are hailed as heroes. However, in an ironic twist of fate, the demolition speeds all 1000 pieces of the asteroid toward the Earth. The devastating impacts end up destroying all human life. In the movie's final, chilling scene, narrator Heston is heard weakly shouting something about apes and Hell.
Public Reception of Armageddon
"Armageddon" was an immediate hit with television audiences, who made it the 3rd highest rated TV movie of all time. Critics praised Armageddon for its tightly woven plot and rigid adherence to the laws of physics. In addition, the "Armageddon" soundtrack, written and performed entirely by Liv Tyler and Britney Spears, became the top-selling movie soundtrack ever, leaving The Sound of Music in its dust. While no official announcement has been made yet, Disney is expected to release a 10th anniversary collectors edition of Armageddon on DVD sometime in 2008.
