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The Core

  • 20032003
  • PG-13PG-13
  • 2h 15m
IMDb RATING
5.5/10
99K
YOUR RATING
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
  • IMDbPro
Aaron Eckhart, Stanley Tucci, Delroy Lindo, Hilary Swank, Bruce Greenwood, and DJ Qualls in The Core (2003)
Home Video Trailer from Paramount Home Entertainment
Play trailer2:35
1 Video
79 Photos
  • Action
  • Adventure
  • Sci-Fi

The only way to save Earth from catastrophe is to drill down to the core and set it spinning again.The only way to save Earth from catastrophe is to drill down to the core and set it spinning again.The only way to save Earth from catastrophe is to drill down to the core and set it spinning again.

IMDb RATING
5.5/10
99K
YOUR RATING
  • Director
    • Jon Amiel
  • Writers
    • Cooper Layne
    • John Rogers
  • Stars
    • Aaron Eckhart
    • Hilary Swank
    • Delroy Lindo
Top credits
  • Director
    • Jon Amiel
  • Writers
    • Cooper Layne
    • John Rogers
  • Stars
    • Aaron Eckhart
    • Hilary Swank
    • Delroy Lindo
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 595User reviews
    • 82Critic reviews
    • 48Metascore
  • See more at IMDbPro
  • Videos1

    The Core
    Trailer 2:35
    The Core

    Photos79

    Aaron Eckhart and Hilary Swank in The Core (2003)
    (Beginning lower left and clockwise) Hilary Swank as Beck, Aaron Eckhart as Josh, Delroy Lindo as Brazzleton, Stanley Tucci as Zimsky, Bruce Greenwood as Richard, and Tchely Karyo as Serge.
    (Left center) Aaron Eckhart as Josh and (center) Stanley Tucci as Zimsky
    (Left to right) Hilary Swank, Bruce Greenwood, and Alfre Woodard
    Hilary Swank in The Core (2003)
    Aaron Eckhart and DJ Qualls in The Core (2003)
    Alfre Woodard in The Core (2003)
    Hilary Swank and Bruce Greenwood in The Core (2003)
    Aaron Eckhart and Stanley Tucci in The Core (2003)
    Aaron Eckhart in The Core (2003)
    Hilary Swank in The Core (2003)
    Delroy Lindo in The Core (2003)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Aaron Eckhart
    Aaron Eckhart
    • Joshas Josh
    Hilary Swank
    Hilary Swank
    • Beckas Beck
    Delroy Lindo
    Delroy Lindo
    • Brazzeltonas Brazzelton
    Bruce Greenwood
    Bruce Greenwood
    • Commander Richard Iversonas Commander Richard Iverson
    Christopher Shyer
    Christopher Shyer
    • Dave Perryas Dave Perry
    Ray Galletti
    Ray Galletti
    • Paulas Paul
    Eileen Pedde
    Eileen Pedde
    • Lynneas Lynne
    Rekha Sharma
    Rekha Sharma
    • Dannias Danni
    • (as Rékha Sharma)
    Tom Scholte
    • Ackeras Acker
    Glenn Morshower
    Glenn Morshower
    • FBI Agentas FBI Agent
    Anthony Harrison
    Anthony Harrison
    • FBI Agentas FBI Agent
    Tchéky Karyo
    Tchéky Karyo
    • Sergeas Serge
    • (as Tcheky Karyo)
    Richard Jenkins
    Richard Jenkins
    • General Purcellas General Purcell
    Bart Anderson
    • Dadas Dad
    Nicole Leroux
    Nicole Leroux
    • Momas Mom
    Justin Callan
    • Little Boyas Little Boy
    Chris Humphreys
    Chris Humphreys
    • GBTV Reporter - Trafalgar Squareas GBTV Reporter - Trafalgar Square
    Dion Johnstone
    Dion Johnstone
    • Flight Engineer Timminsas Flight Engineer Timmins
    • Director
      • Jon Amiel
    • Writers
      • Cooper Layne
      • John Rogers
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
    • All cast & crew

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    Storyline

    Edit
    The Earth's core has stopped spinning. Disasters are happening around the globe, including; animals acting in bizarre ways, monstrous thunderstorms. Dr. Josh Keyes and his crew of 5 go down to the centre to set off a nuclear device, hoping to make the core start spinning again, or humanity will cease. —Inhotenjoys
    • natural disaster
    • terranaut
    • earth
    • core
    • scientist
    • 150 more
    • Plot summary
    • Plot synopsis
    • Taglines
      • Earth has a deadline
    • Genres
      • Action
      • Adventure
      • Sci-Fi
      • Thriller
    • Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)
      • Rated PG-13 for sci-fi life/death situations and brief strong language
    • Parents guide

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      (at around 9 mins) Near the end of the "birds" scene, a trout is seen smashing into a window instead of a pigeon. This was a joke left in by the team that did the CG pigeons.
    • Goofs
      (at around 1h 30 mins) During the bridge scene the microwave energy can melt through several feet of galvanized carbon steel wire (main cable) and the bridge beams themselves but not through less than 2mm of metal on the car's body shell.
    • Quotes

      Col. Robert Iverson: Being a leader isn't about ability. It's about responsibility.

      Maj. Rebecca Childs: Got it, sir.

      Col. Robert Iverson: No you don't, Beck. I mean, you're not just responsible for the good ones. You've got to be responsible for the bad ones. You've got to be ready to make the shitty call.

      Maj. Rebecca Childs: What makes you think I'm not?

      Col. Robert Iverson: Because you're so damn good. You haven't hit anything you couldn't beat. I mean, hell, you were the one who figured out how to save the space shuttle. You made me, you made the rest of NASA just look like an ass. It's just you're used to winning... and you're not really a leader until you've lost.

    • Crazy credits
      At the beginning when the Paramount pictures logo is shown there is a transition between the Paramount pictures logo and the film - the camera zooms in on the mountain then starts to move down through the mountain to the core of the earth.
    • Connections
      Featured in Troldspejlet: Episode #29.14 (2003)
    • Soundtracks
      Weren't You the One
      by Roger Kellaway & K. Lawrence Dunham

      Performed by Sherry Williams

      Courtesy of WilliamSound West

    User reviews595

    Review
    Top review
    5/10
    Core has chewy center, cheesy surface
    Hollywood's gone to the outer reaches of our galaxy (not to mention others), it's plumbed the depths of the ocean, mapped dank swamps and arid deserts, but one place it hasn't gone to with any sort of regularity is the inner core itself.

    The Core is certainly one of those movies for which one must suspend disbelief. It's a science-fiction movie that emphasizes fiction over all; that is, the physics of the film don't hold up to snuff. If you're an engineer or physicist, you should be smart enough not to watch it - you'll just spend most of your time second-guessing the inane psuedoscience.

    It seems the inner core of the Earth has stopped spinning, for some reason, and this has caused the electromagnetic field that surrounds and protects the planet to begin to decompose. This is evidenced by, among other things, pigeons in Tralfagar Square in London suddenly veering at plate-glass windows and sundry people who wish they were extras in a less-violent movie, like Daddy Daycare or maybe Finding Nemo. At any rate, the world's leading scientists, commissioned by the military (it wouldn't be a Save the Planet from Imminent Destruction without our pals in the movie military), figure out that the core's stopped rotating, and that Something Must Be Done to get it going again.

    Ah, but what? We've only drilled down about 8 miles, and according to my calculations the distance from the surface to the core is .... a bit further. We must drill down, sayeth the sage scientists, and lo and behold, through the magic of movies, there's this guy in the desert who's been working on a laser rocket thingy that'll help them blast all the way down. This handy little thing is just the cure, so a crew is hastily assembled: Commander Iverson (Bruce Greenwood), Major Beck Childs (Hilary Swank), Dr. Josh Keyes (Aaron Eckhart), Dr. Serge Leveque (Tcheky Karyo), Dr. Conrad Zimsky (Stanley Tucci), and Dr. Ed Brazzelton.

    Like such doomsday movies as Armageddon, what The Core has going for it are likeable characters and a lot of nifty FX. It also has the unknown working for it; we don't know what lies beneath the thin crust of the Earth, because we haven't drilled beyond it. That allows filmmakers a lot of free reign to depict whatever the heck they want in terms of What's Down There.

    What The Core has going against it, however, is a predictable plot and some howlingly awful dialog. Now, it's not giving anything away to mention that at least one person doesn't make it back from this mission. It's also not giving anything away to note that there's at least one knockdown, drag-out hissy fit of a scene in which Keyes admonishes Childs for something she didn't do. It's hysterical to watch, although I suspect the emotion the director was attempting to convey was more like empathy, not euphoria. Or ennui, which is unfortunately how some of the movie felt.

    The Core is cheesy. No, not the actual inner core - although, come to think of it, maybe it is, since we don't know for sure what it's made of. And wouldn't that be fitting? A cheesy core for a cheesy film made by cheesy people in a cheesy society? Who's up for some Muenster?
    helpful•138
    59
    • dfranzen70
    • Sep 23, 2003

    FAQ7

    • What is 'The Core' about?
    • Is 'The Core' based on a book?
    • Is it really possible to go to the core with a subterranean ship?

    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • March 28, 2003 (United States)
    • Countries of origin
      • United Kingdom
      • France
      • Italy
      • Germany
      • Canada
      • United States
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • Core
    • Filming locations
      • Trafalgar Square, St James's, London, England, UK
    • Production companies
      • Paramount Pictures
      • David Foster Productions
      • Munich Film Partners New Century & Company (MFP) Core Productions
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $60,000,000 (estimated)
    • Gross US & Canada
      • $31,186,896
    • Opening weekend US & Canada
      • $12,053,131
      • Mar 30, 2003
    • Gross worldwide
      • $73,498,611
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      2 hours 15 minutes
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • DTS
      • SDDS
      • Dolby Digital
    • Aspect ratio
      • 2.35 : 1

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