Customer Reviews

The Final Countdown [VHS]

5 star:		(226)
4 star:		(62)
3 star:		(26)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(28)

 

 

This film is well written, has an all star cast and has wonderful photography. Filmed well before Top Gun, The Final Countdown has great areial combat/flight scenes and shows the awesome capabilites of the navy's modern nuclear aircraft carriers and the stressful environment that all aboard have to live with every day.

Kirk Douglass and Marten Sheen show why they were "A" list actors when this film was made. Both gave excellent performances.

The script was well written with the exploration of the ships crew trying to deal with a potential paradox that would effect every person on the planet.

Great acting a good story and super photography of aircraft carrier and flight operations. If you like these features, you will love this movie.

"The Final Countdown" is one of my all-time favorite films, because it has just about everything I like: military hardware, heroism, and history -- with a delicious helping of sci-fi fantasy. Off the coast of Hawaii, the modern day USS Nimitz encounters a bizarre storm, which is actually a portal through time. The crew gradually becomes convinced that they have emerged in 1941 just prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor -- and that they have the futuristic firepower to stop it. But can history really be changed? Initially, it seems likely! In the highlight scene of the film, F-14 Tomcats go to the rescue of a yacht under attack by Zeros. Survivors, a suspicious Congressman and his assistant, as well as an incredulous Japanese pilot, are brought on board the spectacularly anachronistic aircraft carrier. From there, the mission to change history begins to go awry as paradox-producing events occur. Nonetheless, the Nimitz never falters. And you really anticipate, even as the time portal begins to close, that her guns and aircraft will engage the oncoming enemy. "The Final Countdown" is a wonderful fantasy, very realistically enacted. For a time-travel epic, I like the way all the "loose ends" are neatly tied up. History is preserved, with a sensitive, and I must say, emotional, tribute to the heroes of Pearl Harbor.

This is without doubt one of my all time favorite movies, good acting, good plot, etc. For those who can get the book and read it there is more, though the movie was quite good. I look forward to getting it on DVD as soon as it is released again.

It wasn't until last year that I made it to Pearl Harbor, and to my surprise saw one the newer "Nimitz" class carriers, CVN-72, USS Abraham Lincoln. The scene at the end of the movie was not only realistic as they pass by the USS Arizona. It was a great tribute to the brave men on that USS Arizona, to all those died on that fateful day, and to those who fortunate enough to survive. To the brave men and women who served in World War II we owe a deep gratitude we can never re-pay.

I did some further research and found out that Pacific Family Entertainment will be re-releasing "The Final Countdown" on both DVD and VHS in the Winter some time. We don't have to worry about buying used, or worn out copies of the film any more !!

First of all, I have to say The Final Countdown is one of my favorite sci-fi films of all time. If you like time travel stories and the dilemas they create, then you'll love this film. Also, it's a great look into the day to day operations of an aircraft carrier. The technical details were outstanding from my POV; though not having been in the Navy I can't really say how accurate they were, but they sounded convincing enough.

The DVD that has been released from Pacific Family Entertainment though is another matter entirely. After waiting 6 months after it's supposed release date, I finally received it and watched it. The transfer is very poor to the point where you can see the scan lines from whatever source they made it from (VHS? LD?). It's good the film is in Letterbox, but I was hoping that it would also be enhanced for Widescreen TV's.

Though the case boasts that the DVD has special features such as Scene Selection and Theatrical Trailer, it had no menu except for "Play Movie" and "Trailer" In fact, the movie has no chapters at all.

I hope that someone else can get the rights to this movie and make a DVD that's worthy of this excellent piece of 80's nostalgia.

So 5 stars for the movie, but 0 stars for such a poorly executed DVD.

"The Final Countdown" is one of those films that never got the recognition that it so rightfully deserves.

Blending history, military, moral dilema & science fiction together nearly perfectly, "Final Countdown" is a very powerful and thought-provoking film about a chance to change the course of history.

The modern-day nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Nimitz
(an Atlantic Fleet-based aircraft carrier)stationed at Pearl Harbor goes through a mysterious electrical storm in the Pacific Ocean, the crew (Kirk Douglas, Captain; James Farentino, Airwing Commander; Ron O'Neal, XO) & a cilvilian advisor (Martin Sheen)
soon realize through a series of events that they have gone back in time to December 6, 1941, the day before the attack on Pearl Harbor!

After rescuing survivors of a yacht blown up by Japanese Zeros, the crew of the Nimitz is faced with a decision that would change the course of history...whether they should destroy the Japanese Fleet BEFORE they attack Pearl Harbor.

For those of you who've seen the movie, you know the ending.

For those who've never seen "Final Countdown", I won't ruin what is a great ending!

I've been waiting for years for "Final Countdown" to come out on DVD. Hopefully it will be loaded with extra features never found on the rare VHS version from Vestron.

The footage aboard the USS Nimitz is fantastic. No movie since has shown in such detail the action aboard a modern-day carrier.
The flightdeck scenes are breath-taking. You'll see aircraft markings on the F-14s & other aircraft that look absolutely awesome!

This is a movie you will want to watch over & over again.

This is and has been one of my favorite movies since I saw it in the theater back in '80. It has a good mix of science fiction and military realism that just isn't found in similar movies of the same genre... The movie begins eerily with the departure of the largest nuclear powered aircraft carrier from the Naval dock at Pearl Harbor. Shortly thereafter, the ship and crew encounter an electrical storm that paralyzes the operations on board the ship. Once passed through, they find themselves, (through process of elimination), on the eve of the attack on Pearl Harbor. The Captain, (convincingly played by Kirk Douglas), and senior officers have to decide to make a decision as to whether to attack the Japanese fleet or let history run its course- -that is all I will say-notwithstanding a well chosen twist ending however. As far as my opinion of the acting is concerned, I disagree with the previous reviews that Kirk Douglas and Martin Sheen played down their respective roles- -anything otherwise would have resulted in the typical sci-fi OVERacting that plagues many of the same type of movies save for the special effects of the day; which in any era, quickly become outdated. (Luckily, this movie was made before the rampant overuse of CGI.)
All of that said, their inflection and dialog is dead on: Captain Yelland's humorous dismay of "two WHAT?!" when he receives a report of the two Japanese Zeros seen by the ships recon. F-14's...very fitting.
On to the DVD: It is the worst transfer for public sale I have seen to date-period. In my technical opinion, it is a dupe from ANOTHER REGION DVD (PAL to NTSC). Trust me, this did NOT come from a Laserdisc. LD's are capable of nearly the same picture quality as a DVD and in some cases actually better- -The Final Countdown is no exception in both image and sound quality (which is in two track digital). The only benefit this DVD has is letterboxing-(there was never a letterboxed LD.) This Region 1 DVD is awful in every respect.
If you want a high quality version (DVD wise), wait for a real studio to master this very entertaining movie...

Imagine you are the captain of the USS Nimitz, the pride of the modern U.S. Navy, and you suddenly discover you have a chance to completely rewrite history. What would you do?
Such is the situation facing the crew of the USS Nimitz in this fascinating movie about traveling through time and the paradoxes people would face in such a situation. Featuring a young Kirk Douglas and a young Martin Sheen, I once heard a reviewer proclaim this a "Navy recruiting film", but it is a fascinating look at what might happen if ordinary people were suddenly given the chance to change history. The flight sequences are amazing (especially the two Tomcats taking on two Japanese Zeros) even if they aren't anywhere close to those in "Top Gun". The plot is a little thin at times (where the heck did that time tunnel come from?), but Douglas and Sheen play off each other well as the skeptical captain and the eager Mr. Laskey. Note: It's fun to watch the two Japanese Zeros fly--they're the same ones used in the old "Baa Baa Black Sheep" series. Anybody here remember that?

The Movie
A time travel movie about the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Nimitz getting caught in a storm and sent back to December 6th 1941. With the chance to stop the attack on pearl harbor. with Kirk Douglas and martin sheen u know it must have some quality they alone make it and interesting mix of talent

The Video
The video is better than any othe transfer of this movie before it is crisp clear no fuzz or noise. It is availble in full and widescreen. Widescreen is the only way to see the whole movie the it was shot for the theater

The audio
the 5.1 mix is stellar and really rumbles the room thru the storm and other shots. There is also a 2.0 mix which is ok but where it shines is its dtx mix it is mind blowing

The Extras
Commentary
from The Director And photographer as very boring to listen too they seem bored and uninterested in what they are saying plus get off topic alot

Theatrical Trailers
Nice to see but really bad quality

T.V. spots
More trailers

Bonus Disc if u get the 2 disc limited edition
Inteview with Associate Producer Llyod Kaufman not very interesting makes u say where are the stars who cares about producers

Interviews with jolly rogers f-14 squadron
more fluff with nothing to really do with the movie

poster and still gallery
always a pointless feature

Kirk douglas bio
the bright spot of the extras not really much to do with the movie but a great look at kik

DVD-ROM Feature
Zero Pilot Journal
more just fluff not really interesting

The only version of The Final Countdown I have seen was on Channel 5 a few years ago. Though it was probably edited for content and for time, I still liked it. So I hope that Amazon.com will re-release it on VHS so I can see the full version.

The modern day (1980) aircraft carrier U.S.S Nimitz goes back in time to December 6, 1941, the day before the Japanese attack Pearl Harbor. The crew of the Nimitz encounters many adventures before they travel back to the present. The best part of the film is when a pair of F-14 Tomcats destroy two Japanese zeroes (My dad compared it to Mosquitoes against flies). This all leads up to the climax of should the Nimitz, with her overwhelming firepower, change history? Or should history not be tampered with? It also makes us wonder as to what would we do if we were put in that situation. Many fine performances are given throughout. Especially good are Martin Sheen and Kirk Douglas, all at the peek of their careers.

this version from Triumph/PFE is apparantly not a legal edition, nor is it of even good quality, IMHO.

BUT WAIT! It has been announced that a fully licensed, restored, THX approved, 6.1/5.1 DTS/DD WS 16x9, HD transfer SE DVD with extras will be coming in June, 2004 from Blue Underground-Bill Lustings new company...PFE has been sent cease and desist orders...