Armageddon (movie, 1998)

Summary

While on mission in Earth orbit, the shuttle Atlantis is destroyed by a meteorite shower that ends its run on New York . This is the prelude to a major disaster: an asteroid the size of Texas will crash on Earth in exactly eighteen days. Dan Truman, flight operations director at NASA, consider the mission of the last chance: send astronauts on the asteroid to dig a well in which will be inserted a nuclear charge. To do this, he uses Harry Stamper, the largest specialist in oil drilling. But the latter, as well as his men, have no notion of astronautics, and will have to benefit from accelerated training.

Technical sheet

• Director: Michael Bay
• Scenario: Jonathan Hensleigh , Tony Gilroy , Shane Salerno and JJ Abrams based on a story by Jonathan Hensleigh and Robert Roy Pool
• Sets: Michael White
• Costumes: Michael Kaplan and Magali Guidasci
• Photography: John Schwartzman
• Editing: Chris Lebenzon and Glen Scantlebury
• Music: Trevor Rabin and Harry Gregson-Williams
  • Additional: Steve Jablonsky , John Van Tongeren , Don Harper , Martin Tillman and Justin Caine Burnett
• Producers: Jerry Bruckheimer , Michael Bay and Gale Anne Hurd
• Production Companies: Touchstone Pictures , Jerry Bruckheimer Films
• Distribution Company: Buena Vista Distribution
• Budget: 140 million $
• Language: English
• Genre: Catastrophe , science fiction
• Duration: 145 minutes
• Release dates:
  •  United States : June 30, 1998 (Westwood, California) (first),1 ^st July 1998 (National)
  •  France : August 5, 1998

Distribution

• Bruce Willis (VF: Patrick Poivey , VQ: Jean-Luc Montminy ) : Harry S. Stamper
• Billy Bob Thornton (VF: Joel Martineau , VQ: Daniel Picard ) : Dan Truman
• Ben Affleck (VF: Jean-Pierre Michael , VQ: Pierre Auger ) : Albert Jones “AJ” Frost
• Liv Tyler (VF: Virginie Mery, VQ: Christine Bellier ) : Grace Stamper
• Will Patton (VQ: Benoît Rousseau ) : Charles “Chick” Chapple
• Steve Buscemi (VF: Herve Bellon , VQ: François Sasseville ) : Rockhound
• William Fichtner (VF: Nicolas Married , VQ: Yves Corbeil ) : Colonel William Sharp
• Owen Wilson (VF: Patrick Noise , VQ: Luis de Cespedes ) : Oscar Choi
• Michael Clarke Duncan (VF: Said Amadis , VQ: Guy Nadon ) : Jayotis Kurleen Bear
• Peter Stormare (VF: Dominique Collignon-Maurin and VQ: Carl Béchard ) : Colonel Lev Andropov (Cosmonaut)
• Ken Hudson Campbell (VF: Jean-Jacques Nervest, VQ: Olivier Visentin ) : Max Lennert
• Jessica Steen (VF: Danièle Douet , VQ: Élise Bertrand ) : Colonel Jennifer Watts
• Keith David (VF: Med Hondo , VQ: Pierre Chagnon ) : General Kimsey
• Jason Isaacs (VF: Herve Jolly , VQ: Emmanuel Bilodeau ) : Dr. Ronald Quincy
• Chris Ellis (VF: Jean-François Aupied , VQ: Marc Bellier ) : Walter Clark
• Grayson McCouch : Gruber
• Clark Heathcliffe Brolly (VF: Patrice Baudrier ) : Frederick “Freddy” Noonan
• Marshall R. Teague (VF: Marc Alfos , VQ: Daniel Lesourd) : Colonel Davis
• Anthony Guidera (VQ: Sylvain Hétu ) : Tucker
• Layla Roberts : Molly Mounds
• Grace Zabriskie (VF: Perrette Pradier , VQ: Johanne Garneau) : Dottie
• Greg Collins : Lieutenant Halsey
• Udo Kier (VF: Pierre Dourlens ) : NASA psychologist
• John Mahon (VF: Michel Fortin , VQ: Ronald France ) : Karl
• Stanley Anderson (VQ: Claude Préfontaine ) : the President of the United States
• Eddie Griffin (VF: Éric Métayer , VQ: Yanic Truesdale ) : the dog cyclist
• Charlton Heston (VF: Roland Menard , VQ: Eric Gaudry ) : the narrator
• Michael Bay : a scientist from NASA

Soundtrack

The soundtrack is composed of fourteen titles, including four from the group Aerosmith (whose singer Steven Tyler is the father of actress Liv Tyler , who plays in the film):

1. I Do not Wanna Miss a Thing – Aerosmith
2. Remember me – Journey
3. What Kind of Love Are You On – Aerosmith
4. The barn – ZZ Top
5. Roll me away – Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band
6. When the rainbow comes – Shawn Colvin
7. Sweet Emotion – Aerosmith
8. Mister big time – Jon Bon Jovi
9. Come Together – Aerosmith
10. Wish I was you – Patti Smith
11. Starseed – Our Lady Peace
12. Leaving on a plane – Chantal Kreviazuk
13. Theme from Armageddon composed by Trevor Rabin
14. Animal Crackers – Vocals by Steven Tyler – Talking to Liv Tyler and Ben Affleck

Box office

Country or region	Box Office	Box office shutdown date	Number of weeks
United States Canada	$ 201,578,182 1	September 24 , 19982	12 2
la France	4,618,327 entries 3	n / A	–
global	$ 553,709,788 1	n / A	–

Distinctions

Awards

• MTV Movie Awards 1999
  • Best song for Aerosmith
  • Best action scene
• 19 ^th ceremony Razzie Awards
  • Worst actor for Bruce Willis

Appointments

Armageddon was nominated four times during the 71 ^th Academy Awards :

• Oscar for the best sound
• Oscar for the best visual effects
• Oscar for the best sound editing
• Oscar for the best original song

The film is also nominated six times during the 19 ^th ceremony Razzie Awards :

• Worst Actress in a Supporting Role for Liv Tyler
• Worst scenario for Jonathan Hensleigh and JJ Abrams
• Worst couple on screen for Ben Affleck and Liv Tyler
• Worst film
• Worst Original Song
• Worst director for Michael Bay

Around the film

• The same year ( 1998 ) was released another American film with the same frame of scenario: Deep Impact which is more focused on the human side of the disaster.
• The first part of the scenario repeats the plot of the film Hellfighters ( Hellfighters , 1968) of Andrew McLaglen which tells the adventures of a specialist oil well extinctions (inspired by Red Adair ) and its conflicting relationship with his daughter who has just married his young and intrepid partner.
• For the occasion of the film, a fake mission badge has been created. It is marked For all mankind ( to all mankind ) and STS-9 number ?. The last figure is not shown but suggests that the action of the film is between the missions STS-90 and STS-99 , between April 17, 1998 and February 11, 2000.
• The person who assembles the four parts of the satellite asteroid in infrared view is none other than director Michael Bay .
• The film was adapted into an attraction, Armageddon: The Special Effects in the Walt Disney Studios theme park . One of the 12 Wheel Scarabs is exposed right in front of the attraction.
• The film’s asteroid is actually a land located in South Dakota . Michael Bay spotted him while traveling from his jet. He then convinced the production to build several kilometers of road to be able to transport the equipment ⁴ .
• The director was allowed to place cameras around the shuttle when it was launched. Some, strongly shaken, were made in several pieces at Panavision ⁴ .

Notes and references