Solar Crisis (film)
| Solar Crisis | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Richard C. Sarafian |
| Produced by |
Richard Edlund James Nelson |
| Screenplay by |
Joe Gannon Crispan Bolt |
| Based on |
The novel by Takeshi Kawata |
| Starring |
Tim Matheson Charlton Heston Peter Boyle Annabel Schofield Corin Nemec Jack Palance |
| Music by | Maurice Jarre |
| Cinematography | Russell Carpenter |
| Edited by | Richard Trevor |
Production company |
Gakken Co. Ltd. Japan America Picture Company |
| Distributed by |
Bridge Entertainment Group Trimark Pictures Vidmark Entertainment Lions Gate Entertainment (current) |
Release dates | 1990 |
Running time |
111 min Japan:118 min (director's cut) |
| Country | Japan/USA |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $55,000,000 (estimated) |
Solar Crisis is a 1990 science fiction film from Japan America Picture Company. The screenplay was written by Joe Gannon and Tedi Sarafian (credited as Crispan Bolt, Tedi is the director's son), based on the novel Kuraishisu niju-goju nen by Takeshi Kawata, and directed by Richard C. Sarafian credited as Alan Smithee. The cast featured Tim Matheson as Steve Kelso, Charlton Heston as Adm. "Skeet" Kelso, Peter Boyle as Arnold Teague, Annabel Schofield as Alex Noffe, Corin Nemec as Mike Kelso and Jack Palance as Travis. The executive producers were Takeshi Kawata and Takehito Sadamura, with Richard Edlund and veteran sound editor James Nelson as its producers.
This film received a MPAA rating of PG-13, and was filmed in color with Dolby SR stereo sound. The budget is estimated to have been about $55,000,000. It had a very limited theatrical release.
Plot summary
A huge solar flare is predicted to irradiate the Earth. Astronauts aboard the spaceship Helios must go to the Sun to drop a bomb equipped with an Artificial Intelligence (Freddy) and a Japanese pilot (as a backup if the Artificial Intelligence fails) at the right time so the flare will point somewhere else. Giant IXL Corp CEO Teague thinks the flare will not happen and wants the mission to fail so he can buy the planet cheaply while the scare lasts. Employee Haas prepares a surprise for the astronauts. While Steve Kelso commands the space ship where temperature rises, Steve's father Admiral 'Skeet' Kelso is searching the desert for Steve's son Mike who has gone AWOL to say goodbye to his dad but who inadvertently crossed the path of the guys from IXL after meeting desert-dweller Travis.
Cast
- Tim Matheson - Steve Kelso
- Charlton Heston - Adm. "Skeet" Kelso
- Peter Boyle - Arnold Teague
- Annabel Schofield - Alex Noffe
- Corin Nemec - Mike Kelso
- Jack Palance - Travis
- Tetsuya Bessho - Ken Minami
- Dorian Harewood - Borg
- Paul Koslo - Haas
- Sandy McPeak - Gurney
- Silvana Gallardo - T.C.
- Dan Shor - Harvard
- Scott Allan Campbell - McBride
- Frantz Turner - Lamare
- Paul Williams - Freddy the Bomb (voice)
- Brenda Bakke - Claire Beeson
- Michael Berryman - Matthew
- Roy Jenson - Bartender
- H.M. Wynant - IXL executive #1
See also
- Sunshine, a film with a similar premise of dropping a bomb into the Sun to save the Earth.
- Solar Attack, a direct-to-video film by Lions Gate Entertainment with a somewhat similar plot
External links
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