The Final Countdown (1980)

Director:

Don Taylor

Writers:

Thomas Hunter (story) &
Peter Powell (story) ...

Release Date:

1 August 1980 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Adventure | Sci-Fi | War

Tagline:

"...This is the USS Nimitz. Where The Hell Are We...?" - Trapped inside the boundaries of time and space... 102 aircraft... 6,000 men... all missing.

Plot:

A modern aircraft carrier is thrown back in time to 1941 near Hawaii, just hours before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour.

Plot Keywords:

Predestinination | Time Storm | Jap Zero | Old Time Radio | Aerial Refueling

Awards:

1 win & 2 nominations

Cast

Kirk Douglas	...	Capt. Matthew Yelland
Martin Sheen	...	Warren Lasky
Katharine Ross	...	Laurel Scott
James Farentino	...	Wing Commander Richard T. Owens / Mr Richard Tideman
Ron O'Neal	...	Commander Dan Thurman
Charles Durning	...	Senator Samuel Chapman
Victor Mohica	...	Black Cloud
James C. Lawrence	...	Lt. Perry
Soon-Tek Oh	...	Simura, Captured Japanese Pilot (as Soon-Teck Oh)
Joe Lowry	...	Commander Damon
Alvin Ing	...	Kajima
Mark Thomas	...	Marine Cpl. Kullman
Harold Bergman	...	Bellman
Dan Fitzgerald	...	Navy Doctor
Lloyd Kaufman	...	Lt. Cmdr. Kaufman

Also Known As:

U.S.S. Nimitz: Lost in the Pacific (Europe: English title) (DVD box title)

Runtime:

103 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Japanese

Color:

Color (TVC)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Australia:PG | Finland:K-12 | Norway:12 (re-rating) (1982) (cut) | Norway:15 (DVD rating) | Norway:16 (original rating) | Sweden:15 | UK:PG | USA:PG | West Germany:12 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Naval Air Station, Key West, Florida Keys, Florida, USA

Company:

Bryna Productions

Trivia:

The grand finale, where Lasky is invited into the limo and drives away from the ship, was filmed at Nimitz's home port in Norfolk, Virginia. The limo is headed straight off the end of Pier 12.

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When we first see the yacht that the Zeros later destroy, there are two bow ropes attached to it, and they are both taut. The yacht, supposedly in the middle of the ocean, was tied up to something.

Quotes:

[first lines]
F-14 Pilot: [voice over radio] Pearl Tower, Tomcat two-zero-zero. requesting clearance for departure runway zero-nine. Over.
Pearl Harbor Tower: [voice over radio] Two-zero-zero, Pearl Harbor Tower. You are cleared runway oh-niner. Winds zero-four-five at eight. SH-three approaching from the right. Have a nice day.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Time Travel: Fact, Fiction and Fantasy (1985) (TV)

A Guilty Pleasure

There are great films ("Citizen Kane," eg), and there are "big films", like "ET" or "Star Wars." Then there are absolute crap films (eg, WAY too-many to list!). I propose another legitimate category: "Guilty Pleasure Films." These are movies that one can see over and over, through countless repetitions on cable and broadcast channels, and enjoy the experience every time.

For example, I have probably seen "Brighton Beach Memoirs" 40 times. I loved it during its first run, and I've loved it each of the 39 times I've seen it on the small screen. No, it's not a great movie, but it's one that brings me pleasure when I watch it. Same with (blush) "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure": the movie's stupid, but it just always entertains me!

Similarly, nobody is going to compare "The Final Countdown" to "2001: A Space Odyssey" as far as absolute quality, but "The Final Countdown" is a classic example of an unabashed "guilty pleasure" movie.

The story is intriguing--what would YOU do if you were commanding a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier full of supersonic jets, etc, when you were transferred through a time-warp (ref: a CHEESY looking laser and smoke effect storm!) to December 6, 1941?? Would you alter history, just to win a battle against those attacking Pearl Harbor? Or would you hold back because you'd change history if you did anything?

Interesting point! Kirk Douglas, as the ship's captain, looks like he's having a ball acting in this, and Martin Sheen does a great job as the "civilian consultant," Mr. Laskey.

No, this movie isn't an Oscar-winner, nor did it really deserve to be. But I'll put it this way. A local independant station showed "The Final Countdown" tonight at the same time TNN was showing "The Godfather 2" uncut.

I spent maybe five minutes on the Oscar-winning Godfather 2. Yes, it is an empirically great film, but I've seen it once before. But with American fighter jets dogfighting 1941 Japanese Zeros, I was FAR more entertained watching "The Final Countdown" for the 10th time!