Earthquake (1974)

Various interconnected people struggle to survive when an earthquake of unimaginable magnitude hits Los Angeles, California.

Director:

Mark Robson

Writers:

George Fox, Mario Puzo

Stars:

Charlton Heston, Ava Gardner, George Kennedy

Won 1 Oscar. Another 2 wins & 7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Charlton Heston	...	Graff
Ava Gardner	...	Remy
George Kennedy	...	Slade
Lorne Greene	...	Royce
Geneviève Bujold	...	Denise (as Genevieve Bujold)
Richard Roundtree	...	Miles
Marjoe Gortner	...	Jody
Barry Sullivan	...	Stockle
Lloyd Nolan	...	Dr. Vance
Victoria Principal	...	Rosa
Walter Matthau	...	Drunk (as Walter Matuschanskayasky)
Monica Lewis	...	Barbara
Gabriel Dell	...	Sal
Pedro Armendáriz Jr.	...	Chavez (as Pedro Armendariz Jr.)
Lloyd Gough	...	Cameron

Storyline

Construction Engineer Stuart Graff is estranged from his jealously possessive wife, Remy, and has an affair with Denise Marshall, the widow of a co-worker. Meanwhile, Remy tries to persuade her father, Sam Royce, who is Stuart's employer, to use his influence to stop Stuart from seeing Denise. Rogue policeman Lew Slade is suspended from the L.A.P.D. for having punched an obtuse officer from another jurisdiction. Embittered, Slade contemplates quitting the police force. Jody, a perverted grocery store manager, lusts after Rosa Amici, sister of Sal, the assistant to Miles Quade, an aspiring daredevil motor cyclist. The lives of all these people are devastated when a major earthquake rips through Los Angeles and reduces the city to ruins.

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Plot Keywords:

earthquake | engineer | melodrama | chaos | destruction | 

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Taglines:

An Event...

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Genres:

Action | Drama | Thriller

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 November 1974 (USA)

Also Known As:

Terremoto

Filming Locations:

Hollywood Hills, Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$7,000,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$79,700,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Pictures, The Filmakers Group

Technical Specs

Runtime:

122 min 160 min (TV) 121 min (Ontario) 116 min (DVD)

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (35 mm magnetic prints) Sensurround (70 mm and 35 mm magnetic prints) Mono (35 mm optical prints) 70 mm 6-Track (70 mm prints) (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.39 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The part of Miles Quade (Richard Roundtree) was originally written for an Italian-American. Joe Namath and Richard Dreyfuss were considered before the character was re-imagined.

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Goofs

Most, if not all, passenger elevators have mechanical gravity brakes that are automatically activated in the event an elevator plunges uncontrollably.

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Quotes

Sgt. Lew Slade: Some pecker-wood, rich man's whore, in cop's uniform...

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Alternate Versions

For the initial network television showing broadcast on NBC in September 1976, additional footage was shot to lengthen the film in order to show it over two nights. The most extensive segment of new footage is a subplot of a newlywed couple (Debralee Scott and Sam Chew Jr.) on a flight to Los Angleles so the husband can interview for a job with Stuart Graff (Charlton Heston). The plane tries to land as the earthquake hits, but the pilots are able to regain control and fly away before the runway breaks up. Other significant segments are new scenes with Jody (Marjoe Gortner) and Rosa (Victoria Principal), which establish Jody's obsession with Rosa, as well as one short scene in a pawn shop with Buck (Jesse Vint) and Hank (Michael Richardson), who play Marjoe's roommates in the theatrical version. Contrary to popular belief, these additional scenes were *not* "leftover" footage from the original 1974 theatrical release. Rather, the footage was filmed almost two years later by NBC to expand the film. These additional scenes were shot without the original director Mark Robson, who opted out, (in fact, he loathed the additional scenes), but they were shot with Universal's approval. In addition, two deleted scenes originally shot for the theatrical release were re-inserted into the television version, including a narrative opening about the San Andreas Fault, as well as a scene of Rosa brushing off a guy (Reb Brown) trying to give her a ride on his motorcycle. Incidentally, the version frequently running on the American cable channel "American Movie Classics" is the television version, and not the original theatrical version.

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Connections

Referenced in Columbo: Forgotten Lady (1975)

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Soundtracks

C'est si bon
(uncredited)
Music by Henri Betti
Played by a guitarist

User Reviews

Aw, comeon, it's not [that] bad!

I saw this movie on the big-screen when it was released and I actually found the Sensurround (R) to be annoying, but the film isn't as bad as critics made it out to be. I agree, the casting could have been better (the Ava Gardner/Loorne Green argument is a good one), but this is a special effects movie, and the special effects were pretty good by 1974 standards. Besides, how can a movie about the destruction of LA be so bad?