USA: Director Roland Emmerich's latest version of the end of the world, "2012," premieres in Los Angeles

Record ID: 220441

  • Title: USA: Director Roland Emmerich's latest version of the end of the world, "2012," premieres in Los Angeles
  • Date: 5th November 2009
  • Summary: (SOUNDBITE) (English) DIRECTOR ROLAND EMMERICH SAYING: "What I wanted to do, since I have made many movies like that, I thought if I was going to do one more I wanted a scale that was never seen before, i knew that. Special effects played a big part of that and we wanted to make so super real that people buy into it."
  • Embargoed: 20th November 2009 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Usa, Usa
  • Country: USA
  • Reuters ID: LVA7FXNE1QHPLV4X8ZZC960I2LT
  • Story Text: Roland Emmerich pushes the special effects envelope in his latest epic doomsday film, "2012." The German born director was joined on the red carpet by stars John Cusack and Amanda Peet at the film's premiere Tuesday night (November 03, 2009) in Los Angeles.
    "Roland Emmerich is the best in the world at this," explained Cusack. "We knew going in that he was going to, you remember about 10 years ago when you saw "Terminator" or "Terminator 2," when you knew it was going to set a new standard in special effects. That's what he was going for, so we sort of knew he was going to blow people away."
    "It was a little crazy because the previews are very crude and looks like a video game," added Cusack's co-star in "2012," actress Amanda Peet. "Then you see what he really did and it looks a lot more like real life."
    The film's plot blends the idea of the Mayan calendar, which predicts the world ending in 2012, with natural disasters such as volcanic eruptions, typhoons and glaciers plaguing the planet. A large cast of characters have to deal with the ensuing mayhem including Cusack, who plays a writer trying to save his family amid all the catastrophes.
    While "2012" relies heavily on special effects, Emmerich credited the cast with making the film work.
    "I think it is my favorite ensemble cast that I have ever had,." said Emmerich, who also was behind the camera for the blockbuster hit, "Indepdenence Day." "I always say that, I am not trying to put down the other actors that I worked with, but with this everything worked and they all did and amazing job."
    Emmerich's most recent disaster film, 2004's "The Day After Tomorrow," was a smash hit, bringing in more than 542 million at the world-wide box office. Hollywood is hoping for more of the same mayhem with "2012," which is set to open on November 13.
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