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The China Syndrome (1979)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Release Date:
16 March 1979 (USA)
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Tagline:
Today, only a handful of people know what it means... Soon you will know.
Plot:
A reporter finds what appears to be a cover-up of safety hazards at a nuclear power plant. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Nuclear Power
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Reporter
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Television
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Cameraman
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Cover Up
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Awards:
Nominated for 4 Oscars.
Another 6 wins
&
13 nominations
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NewsDesk:
(8 articles)
DGA Board Member Kim Kurumada Dies
(From The Wrap. 22 November 2009, 1:49 PM, PST)
Movie Maverick Melnick Dead At 77
(From WENN. 15 October 2009, 12:16 PM, PDT)
(From The Wrap. 22 November 2009, 1:49 PM, PST)
Movie Maverick Melnick Dead At 77
(From WENN. 15 October 2009, 12:16 PM, PDT)
User Comments:
Crackerjack thriller!
more (73 total)
Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only) | Jane Fonda | ... | Kimberly Wells |
 | Jack Lemmon | ... | Jack Godell |
 | Michael Douglas | ... | Richard Adams |
 | Scott Brady | ... | Herman De Young |
| James Hampton | ... | Bill Gibson |
| Peter Donat | ... | Don Jacovich |
| Wilford Brimley | ... | Ted Spindler |
 | Richard Herd | ... | Evan McCormack |
| Daniel Valdez | ... | Hector Salas |
| Stan Bohrman | ... | Pete Martin |
 | James Karen | ... | Mac Churchill |
| Michael Alaimo | ... | Greg Minor |
| Donald Hotton | ... | Dr. Lowell |
| Khalilah Ali | ... | Marge |
| Paul Larson | ... | D.B. Royce |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
122 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (Metrocolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Certification:
UK:PG |
Australia:PG |
Canada:PG |
Argentina:13 |
Chile:14 |
Finland:K-12 |
Norway:12 (original rating) |
Norway:15 (re-rating) |
Sweden:11 |
USA:PG |
West Germany:12 |
Singapore:PG |
Netherlands:AL
Filming Locations:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
Stephen Bishop was brought on late in production to write the film's title song, "Somewhere In Between." Producers wanted a song to replace the one originally chosen for the titles, which they felt didn't fit the film. The original song was a then-unknown song called "What A Fool Believes" by The Doobie Brothers.
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Goofs:
Factual errors: In the United States, there are two main types of commercial power reactors: PWR (Pressurized Water Reactor) and BWR (Boiling Water Reactor). In the scene where Gibson is explaining the basic workings of the plant to Kimberly Wells, the diagram on the board shows the former type, PWR. This is shown by the two loop system in which the water is pumped through the reactor under high pressure to prevent boiling, and then through a steam generator, or boiler, to create steam for the turbine using clean secondary water. In subsequent scenes, the dialog of the characters in the control room seems to suggest that they are dealing with a BWR system, where water is allowed to boil in the reactor vessel and steam is directly piped to the turbine, with no steam generator. Godell is concerned by the high water level in the reactor reaching the steam lines, of which there are none on a PWR reactor vessel. As well, in the action hearing later, the investigator talks about how the operators began cutting off feedwater and releasing steam in order to lower the reactor water level, which would only happen on a BWR.
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Quotes:
Movie Connections:
Referenced in "Saturday Night Live: Megan Mullally/Clay Aiken (#29.11)" (2004)
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Soundtrack:
Somewhere in Between
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FAQ
How does the movie end?Which came first... "China Syndrome" or the meltdown at Three Mile Island?
Could the "China Syndrome" happen in real life?
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more (73 total)
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Intelligent, nail-biting drama came out of nowhere in 1979 and soon was on the cover of every newspaper in America (when life imitated the film). A nuclear power plant employee in Southern California is threatened by superiors when he decides to go public with the real story behind an accident at the plant. Ostensibly a stuck valve problem, a TV news-crew's film shows that it was an accident verging on disastrous proportions--and worse, that safety conditions are being scrubbed to save millions of dollars, a cover-up that endangers everyone's lives. The movie occasionally gets too technical (especially in the second-half) and could use more human interplay, however the performances by Jack Lemmon, Jane Fonda (as a puff-piece news-woman in the right place at the right time), and Michael Douglas (as a freelance cameraman) are superb. The throwaway bits involving nuclear protesters is both entirely accurate and bitterly satirical, and the news-biz (with its corporate structure and vapid yes-men) is vividly captured. ***1/2 from ****