BootDigest Such a frustrating disappointment

Aubrey Hackett While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.

Lidia Draper Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.

Ella-May O'Brien Each character in this movie — down to the smallest one — is an individual rather than a type, prone to spontaneous changes of mood and sometimes amusing outbursts of pettiness or ill humor.

SnoopyStyle Capt. Matthew Yelland (Kirk Douglas) is in command of the American nuclear aircraft carrier USS Nimitz. Warren Lasky (Martin Sheen) is on a special assignment from the DOD. He has a mysterious benefactor Richard Tideman who helped design the ship. They go out to sea and is caught in an unusual storm that sends them back in time to right before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. Laurel Scott (Katharine Ross) is the assistant to Senator Samuel Chapman (Charles Durning). They are on a yacht attacked by the Japanese. Cdr. Owens (James Farentino) is the lead jet pilot.There is some great footage of an aircraft carrier and real fighters. This is most notable for all the real work considering this is pre-CGI. Everything is in camera. It's probably the only time that jet fighters get into a dogfight with propeller fighters on screen. When the music comes up, it's all done with so much energy. There is some drawback with using the regular crew as extras and Farentino isn't the most charismatic actor. I do like that they have a discussion about time travel. This is probably the second best real fighter planes movie after 'Top Gun'.

thomaslabelle9 What's the point of this film? Not a bad premise but then they do NOTHING with it. They could have had some fun with it but no, they futz around in the past and then return leaving practically everything unchanged. I would have liked some action but none was delivered. Considering this is science fiction of sorts, I rate this a poor movie that wasted its decent cast with a dumb script and NO imagination. They could have at least provided some laughs bit there's none of those either. Everyone who sees this film is probably hoping that the Nimitz kicks some butts and saves Pearl Harbor. Then we could have some fun with what would happen if history was changed in that way but again ... no.

comicman117 In the 1980 Worst of Episode, Gene Siskel said that the Final Countdown suffered from the idiotic plot. Now you could consider the plot to be ridiculous, but I personally don't think the plot is idiotic in any way; in fact the plot is quite interesting.Although the Final Countdown is not a particularly great movie, it is entertaining and interesting. The whole idea of trying to stop a historical event (in this case the bombing of pearl harbor) is something that has been done in fiction before. But it's always interested me. What if you had to opportunity to stop a great disaster, would you?The cast is great. You got Kirk Douglas as the gruff Captain, Martin Sheen as the Skipper whose the most intelligent member of the crew, James Farentino as the Wing Commander, Ron O'Neal as the other commander, Katherine Ross as a woman from 1945 who doesn't serve any real purpose until the end and seems to be their just so they can have a female in the film, Charles Durning as a senator from 1945 whose very important to the plot of the film. Lloyd Kaufman (who was an associate producer, back when he was still involved with mainstream films) also makes an unrecognizable appearance as a member of the crew. His character being named Kaufman in the credits was obviously intentional. He didn't really stand out though, so I didn't notice him on first viewing.The music by John Scott is great too. It gives me a heroic / war feel.The time vortex scene is cool, even if it does feel somewhat outdated by today's standards.Course this being a time travel film, means there are plot holes, but I was able to enjoy the film regardless. It's somewhat silly, but it's entertaining.Plus it's a better Pearl Harbor movie than Pearl Harbor was.

Scott LeBrun "The Final Countdown" does offer up one of those classic dilemmas common to time travel stories: What if you went back in time with knowledge of events that were going to unfold? Would you do something about it? Or let history take its course?That dilemma faces the men aboard the aircraft carrier The U.S.S. Nimitz, which somehow or other is sent back in time - with a fair amount of razzle-dazzle special effects - to just before the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. Involved in the mounting drama are the crafts' captain (Kirk Douglas), a civilian observer (Martin Sheen), assorted personnel (including Ron O'Neal and James Farentino), and a senator (Charles Durning), whose rescue might set in motion a different chain of events.The cast, writers, and crew were clearly having a great time with this fanciful premise. Led by director Don Taylor ("Escape from the Planet of the Apes", "Damien: Omen II"), they take full advantage of official Navy cooperation. There's some exciting action, very nice widescreen photography (this is the kind of movie that needs to be seen in its intended aspect ratio, 2.35:1), and soaring music by John Scott. Pacing is effective, the dialogue intelligent, and the story completely absorbing. One will want to keep watching this just to see how things develop.The acting is effective in every major role. Douglas is solid as a rock in the lead; his company Bryna produced the picture. Katharine Ross provides a female presence to add just a little bit of romance to the plot. If one is a fan of the low budget, schlocky productions of the Troma company, they'll definitely note the presence here of Troma president Lloyd Kaufman, who's the associate producer, unit production manager, and a bit player.It's worth sticking with just for the "twist" ending, even if some viewers are able to predict it.Eight out of 10.