Meteor (1979)

The U.S. must join forces with the U.S.S.R. in order to destroy a gigantic asteroid heading straight for Earth.

Director:

Ronald Neame

Writers:

Stanley Mann (screenplay), Edmund H. North (screenplay)

Stars:

Sean Connery, Natalie Wood, Karl Malden

Nominated for 1 Oscar.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Sean Connery	...	Paul Bradley
Natalie Wood	...	Tatiana Donskaya
Karl Malden	...	Harry Sherwood
Brian Keith	...	Dr. Dubov
Martin Landau	...	General Adlon
Trevor Howard	...	Sir Michael Hughes
Richard Dysart	...	Secretary of Defense
Henry Fonda	...	The President
Joseph Campanella	...	General Easton
Bo Brundin	...	Rolf Manheim
Katherine De Hetre	...	Jan Watkins
James G. Richardson	...	Alan Marshall
Roger Robinson	...	Bill Hunter
Michael Zaslow	...	Sam Mason
John McKinney	...	Peter Watson

Storyline

After a collision with a comet, a nearly five mile (eight kilometer) wide piece of the asteroid "Orpheus" is heading toward Earth. If it hits, it will cause an incredible catastrophe which will probably extinguish mankind. To stop the meteor, N.A.S.A. wants to use the illegal nuclear weapon satellite "Hercules", but soon discovers that it doesn't have enough firepower. Their only chance to save the world is to join forces with the U.S.S.R., which has also launched such an illegal satellite. But will both governments agree?

---

Plot Keywords:

asteroid | meteor | nuclear weapon | astronaut | politics | 

---

Taglines:

There's No Place On Earth To Hide!

---

Genres:

Action | Drama | Sci-Fi | Thriller

---

Certificate:

PG

Did You Know?

Trivia

A million pounds of Bentonite imitation mud were used to film the New York City subway disaster on Stage 30 of the "MGM" Studio. The stage housed a tank and high-speed drainage system, which was used for many of the old Esther Williams "MGM" musicals that featured swimming pools. The New York City subway system was constructed inside the empty swimming pool. The sequence took eight to fourteen days to shoot, runs less than four minutes on-screen, and cost around $1.5 million to shoot.

---

Goofs

The missiles that run out of fuel would not stop and drift away. They would continue on their path until hitting something.

---

Quotes

[Dr. Dubov gives a toast he learned from a cab driver]
Dr. Dubov: Fuck the Dodgers!

---

Crazy Credits

Info panel and Voice Over about a real defence project Icarus, similar to the one in the film.

---

Alternate Versions

In early television broadcasts, the "Fuck the Dodgers!" line was overdubbed by coughing or the entire toast was simply cut.

---

Connections

Featured in WatchMojo: Top 10 Worst Disaster Movies (2017)

User Reviews

Sean Connery's All-Star Version of 'Armageddon'!

With the hoopla surrounding the 1998 releases of 'Armageddon' and 'Deep Impact', many have forgotten that Hollywood had done a previous big screen version of the 'Asteroid on Collision Course with Earth' premise, the 1979 Samuel Z. Arkoff production of 'Meteor'. Panned when first released, the film is dated (Cold War tensions with the Soviet Union are a major plot device), and has some unintentionally campy moments, but is still GREAT fun, with a fabulous cast!

Sean Connery stars, as an American scientist who had left NASA when his designs for a 'asteroid-killer' space missile platform were turned into a weapon aimed at the Soviet Union. After a comet passing through the Asteroid Belt collides with a a city-sized chunk, releasing a five-mile large rock, and launching it towards Earth, he is drafted into leading the American team assigned to turn the platform around, and fire our missiles at the deadly visitor.

Unfortunately, the combined nuclear capacity of the U.S. space arsenal isn't great enough to deflect it from it's path, so an uneasy alliance with the Russians, who ALSO have illegal strategic missiles in space, is achieved. It then becomes a race against time, as pieces of the asteroid obliterate various parts of earth, to coordinate the two missile systems, and launch a strike at the huge rock.

The cast is first-rate; Natalie Wood (in one of her final roles) plays a Russian scientist/interpreter, who is romantically drawn towards Connery; Brian Keith nearly steals the picture as the gregarious Russian team leader; Karl Malden is warm and winning as Connery's best friend, and NASA liason; Martin Landau does a campy bit as a paranoid military liason; and Henry Fonda, looking haggard, appears in a small role as the President. Watch for Sybil Danning (before B-movie stardom), in a cameo, as a doomed Swiss skier!

The FX range from excellent (some of the space scenes), to hokey (the tidal wave in Hong Kong); among the film's pluses is a stirring, beautiful (if at times, overpowering) score by Laurence Rosenthal ('Fantasy Island').

Is 'Meteor' a classic? Certainly not! But it is no worse than the later asteroid films, and Sean Connery is ALWAYS a joy to watch! Take a chance on 'Meteor'...I like it, and I think you will, too!

Details

Country:

USA Hong Kong

Language:

English Russian

Release Date:

19 October 1979 (USA)

Also Known As:

Meteor

Filming Locations:

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios - 10202 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$16,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,250,000, 21 October 1979

Gross USA:

$8,400,000

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$8,400,000

Company Credits

Production Co:

American International Pictures (AIP), Meteor Joint Venture, Palladium Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1