The China Syndrome (1979) cast and crew credits, including actors, actresses, directors, writers and more. Why is Godell so reluctant to testify about the plant's dangers? A small-town detective searching for a missing man has only one lead: a connection with a New York prostitute. In response to a gauge indicating high water levels, Godell begins removing water from the core, but the gauge remains high as operators open more valves to dump water. "The China Syndrome" is perhaps the first horror film that is not necessarily following the rules of the genre. With Jane Fonda, Jack Lemmon, Michael Douglas, Scott Brady. He called the ending both false and bathetic. [11] Twelve days later, the Three Mile Island nuclear accident occurred in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania. Plant officials try to paint Godell as emotionally disturbed, but are contradicted by a distraught Spindler on live television saying Godell was not crazy and would never have taken such drastic steps had there not been something wrong. Starring Jane Fonda, Jack Lemmon and Michael Douglas, and drawing for technical advice on a consulting firm whose principals are by their own admission against more nuclear plants, … so accurate that, even though they're fictional, they could easily be documentaries...we see the greatest fears of the NIMBY culture unearthed when a nuclear power station almost goes out of control and the men-in-suits cover it up...[unknown] to them, the entire incident is covertly filmed by a visiting TV news-crew. Jane … He had only one agenda, and that was China. Kimberly and Richard ask him to testify at the NRC hearings over Foster-Sullivan's plans to build another nuclear plant. From Wings to Parasite, here's a look back at all of the Best Picture Oscar winners in the history of the ceremony. There's not a single piece of music played other than during the title sequence. Search for "The China Syndrome" on Amazon.com, Title: (1979). ...a terrific thriller that incidentally raises the most unsettling questions about how safe nuclear power plants really are. At once a fervent anti-nuclear protest and an edge-of-the-seat thriller. The performances are so good, so consistently, that The China Syndrome becomes a thriller dealing in personal values.[5]. The film stars Jane Fonda, Jack Lemmon, Michael Douglas (who also produced), Scott Brady, James Hampton, Peter Donat, Richard Herd, and Wilford Brimley. The power of this film is more than just the acting, although Lemmon is superb, and more than just the script. Godell finds that a series of radiographs supposedly verifying the welds on the leaking pump are identical – the contractor simply kept resubmitting the same picture. The script and performances are so strong that it doesn't even need a score to keep your attention. ... • Sourcing subcomponents in China and maintaining technology-intensive activities in more highly skilled domestic factories will probably yield a better total cost return than procuring the total product. At Golden Pond, he and his wife nevertheless agree to care for Billy, the son of Chelsea's new boyfriend, and a most unexpected relationship blooms. [6], John Simon said The China Syndrome was a taut, intelligent, and chillingly gripping thriller till it turns melodramatic at its end. And yet the movie works so well not because of its factual basis, but because of its human content. The China Syndrome refers to a scenario in which a molten nuclear reactor core could could fission its way through its containment vessel, melt through the basement of the power plant and down into the earth. Bannon’s White House days as chief adviser to The Donald were numbered right off the bat. It takes place in the contemporary '70's, and features people in the normal profession of broadcast television news. He pushes to delay restarting the plant, but the plant superintendent wants nothing standing in the way of the restart. Filed under: China, Coronavirus, New York Times. USA Network TV Show Ratings (updated 4/8/21), James Hampton, ‘Teen Wolf’ and ‘The Longest Yard’ Actor, Dies at 84, James Hampton Dies: Writer, Director, And Bugler Hannibal Dobbs On ‘F Troop’ Was 84, When Life Gives You Lemons... Watch a Jack Lemmon Movie, Dave Jenkins . With gripping themes and a stellar cast, The China Syndrome is the rare thriller that's as thought-provoking as it is tense. While doing a series of reports on alternative energy sources, a reporter, Kimberly Wells, witnesses an accident at a nuclear power plant. "China syndrome" is a fanciful term that describes a fictional result of a nuclear meltdown, where reactor comp… Certificate: M Kimberly and Richard confront Godell at his home and he voices his concerns. The resulting SCRAM is brought under control only by the plant's automatic systems, and the plant suffers significant damage as the pump malfunctions. A man torn between loyalty to his company and telling the truth - even in the face of grave consequences. GSTAAD—Two years or so ago I had back-to-back New York luncheons with Steve Bannon, and boy, did some of his predictions and fears ever come true! A five-dimension analytical model for deciding when (and when not) to purchase from the East. A young schoolteacher turns into an outlaw to avenge her murdered father. Written by China syndrome A scenario in which a nuclear reactor meltdown in North America would theoretically melt a hole straight through the Earth to China (which is impossible). But, when a news story about the leakage of nuclear energy breaks; let's just say - there is your monster.Jane Fonda is absolutely superb as Kimberley Wells, an ambitious Los Angeles reporter relegated only to fluff pieces by her sexist boss (Peter Donat). Made in 1979, The China Syndrome proved to be one of the most prophetic films ever made, having been released shortly before the Three Mile Island catastrophe. Before dying, he feels the unusual vibration again. [9], The film opened in 534 theatres in the United States and grossed $4,354,854 in its opening weekend. During the cold war, it was always easy to tell who was America's enemy and who was a friend. He brings the evidence to the plant manager, who brushes him off as paranoid, stating that new radiographs would cost $20 million. [10], The March 1979 release was met with backlash from the nuclear power industry's claims of it being "sheer fiction" and a "character assassination of an entire industry". He takes refuge inside the plant, where he finds that the reactor is being brought up to full power. Yes, that was the movie that halted the carbon-free nuclear power industry back in the late 1970s. During an inspection of the plant before it is brought back online, Godell discovers a puddle of radioactive water that has apparently leaked from a pump. Richard has surreptitiously filmed the incident, despite being asked not to film for security reasons. Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? The China Syndrome, a movie about a nuclear disaster, which was released 12 days before the incident and received a tepid reception from the movie-going public, became a blockbuster hit. Minutes into the broadcast, plant technicians deliberately cause a SCRAM so they can distract Godell and retake the control room. A woman whose husband is fighting in Vietnam falls in love with another man who suffered a paralyzing combat injury there. Godell confronts Royce, an employee of Foster-Sullivan who built the plant, as it was he who signed off on the radiographs. It is that this scenario could really happen...atmosphere produced in the plants' control-room is heart-stoppingly intense; characters are uniformly well-acted. NYT Slams Gore for Relying on NYT. [7], The film has a rating of 86% on Rotten Tomatoes based on reviews from 35 critics. The China Syndrome Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station-Wikipedia. In more realistic usage, it describes such a meltdown reaching groundwater and forcing subsequent radioactive gases into the atmosphere. [27 Nov 1988] 80. May 09, 2020. photo credit: Bigstock. Meanwhile his marriage has fallen apart and his children have no respect for him... See full summary ». Three bank robbers on the run happen across a woman about to give birth in an abandoned covered wagon. Godell threatens to go to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, but Royce threatens him; later, a pair of men from Foster-Sullivan park outside his house. Did she kill him and, if not, is she in danger? It follows a television reporter and her cameraman who discover safety coverups at a nuclear power plant. The film stars Jane Fonda, Jack Lemmon, Michael Douglas (who also produced), Scott Brady, James Hampton, Peter Donat, Richard Herd, and Wilford Brimley. Grabbing a gun from a security guard, he forces everyone out, including his friend and co-worker Ted Spindler, and demands to be interviewed by Kimberly on live television. While visiting the (fictional) Ventana nuclear power plant outside Los Angeles, television news reporter Kimberly Wells, her cameraman Richard Adams and their soundman Hector Salas witness the plant going through a turbine trip and corresponding SCRAM (emergency shutdown). A tearful Kimberly concludes her report and the news cuts to commercial. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission and the Shoreham Power Plant, Making a Real Killing: Rocky Flats and the Nuclear West, Nuclear Implosions: The Rise and Fall of the Washington Public Power Supply System, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_China_Syndrome&oldid=1017402125, Films about nuclear accidents and incidents, Short description is different from Wikidata, All Wikipedia articles written in American English, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 12 April 2021, at 15:18. Crime, Certificate: Passed Reviewers praised the film's screenplay, direction, and performances (most notably of Fonda and Lemmon), while it grossed $51.7 million on a production budget of $5.9 million. 60 of 70 people found this review helpful. What makes this horror scenario so compelling is that these are true flesh-and-blood people stuck in the most extraordinary of circumstances faced with both a threat of cosmic proportions as well as a human one.This is a remarkably chilling thriller, and I'm disappointed that it's not taken more seriously (as both art and tract). The China Syndrome (1,065) IMDb 7.4 2 h 2 min 1979 PG A modern nightmare nearly becomes reality in this timely, tension-filled story about an incident ata nuclear power plant. The China Syndrome: Local Labor Market Effects of Import Competition in the United States by David H. Autor, David Dorn and Gordon H. Hanson. A soundtrack experiment for a scene from the film "The China Syndrome." "China syndrome" is a fanciful term that describes a fictional result of a nuclear meltdown, where reactor components melt through their containment structures and into the underlying earth, "all the way to China". Read 9 reviews from the world's largest community for readers. Shift Supervisor Jack Godell notices an unusual vibration in his cup of coffee. While doing a series of reports on alternative energy sources, a reporter, Kimberly Wells, witnesses an accident at a nuclear power plant. The China Syndrome . Price Match Guarantee. The China Syndrome: Local Labor Market Effects of Import Competition in the United States† By David H. Autor, David Dorn, and Gordon H. Hanson* We analyze the effect of rising Chinese import competition between 1990 and 2007 on US local labor markets, exploiting cross-market variation in import exposure stemming from initial differences in The network brass doesn't think so, and soon both Fonda and Douglas are entangled in a web of legalities concerning the tape.The crux of the film is Lemmon's character. The China Syndrome premiered at the 1979 Cannes Film Festival, where it competed for the Palme d'Or while Lemmon received the Best Actor Prize. [13], The sequence of events in the movie is based on events that occurred in 1970 at the, Best Screenplay – Written Directly for the Screen, Best Drama Written Directly for the Screenplay, Nuclear and radiation accidents and incidents, "Box Office Information for The China Syndrome", Nuclear Experts Debate ‘The China Syndrome’ David Burnham, "Winners & Nominees: China Syndrome, The", Anti-nuclear movement in the United States, Institute for Energy and Environmental Research, Conservation Fallout: Nuclear Protest at Diablo Canyon, Critical Masses: Opposition to Nuclear Power in California, 1958–1978, Licensed to Kill? I recommend The China Syndrome to everyone as an example of the dangers of money and corruption. When an idealistic American writer disappears during the Chilean coup d'état in September 1973, his wife and father try to find him. A reporter finds what appears to be a cover-up of safety hazards at a nuclear power plant. She wants something juicier, and gets it, in the form of an accident at a nuclear power plant facilitated by Jack Godell (Jack Lemmon with expressions too numerous to count). Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends. American marathon runner Michael Andropolis sets his heart on representing his country at the Olympic games. " China syndrome " is a fanciful term—not intended to be taken literally—that describes a fictional result of a nuclear meltdown, where reactor components melt through their containment structures and into the underlying earth, "all the way to China." You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. Wells is determined to report the incident but soon finds herself entangled in a sinister conspiracy to keep the full impact of the incident a secret. The film received four nominations at the 52nd Academy Awards; Best Actor (for Lemmon), Best Actress (for Fonda), Best Original Screenplay, and Best Production Design.[4]. The China Syndrome book. Godell taps the first gauge, which immediately unsticks and drops to indicate very low levels. The China Syndrome was a 1979 movie that received much acclaim and attention as it was coincidentally released a mere twelve days before the Three Mile Island nuclear incident in Dauphin County, Pennsylvania. View production, box office, & company info. Find low everyday prices and buy online for delivery or in-store pick-up. Was this review helpful to you? "The China Syndrome" is a terrific thriller that incidentally raises the most unsettling questions about how safe nuclear power plants really are. Another operator notices a second gauge indicating low water levels. It follows a television reporter and her cameraman who discover safety coverups at a nuclear power plant. THE CHINA SYNDROME holds the nuclear power industry to account as a potentially disastrous nuclear "event" is surreptitiously captured by news reporter Jane Fonda and her maverick cameraman Michael Douglas. It became a critical and commercial success. The critical consensus reads: "With gripping themes and a stellar cast, The China Syndrome is the rare thriller that's as thought-provoking as it is tense". Hector's car is run off the road and the radiographs are taken from him. The China Syndrome. It is a movie about a nuclear meltdown. Godell is chased by the men waiting outside his home. Sunset Gower Studios - 1438 N. Gower Street, Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, USA. The China Syndrome. Godell agrees to obtain, through Hector, the false radiographs to take to the hearings. A SWAT team forces its way in, the television cable is cut, and Godell is shot. Action. Parents need to know that The China Syndrome is a suspense-filled, entertaining "issue" movie that has a strong point of view.An active nuclear plant shakes and shimmies; parts crumble and fall, all threatening a catastrophic accident in California. 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