San Andreas

San Andreas is a disaster movie through-and-through, and embraces all the tropes that come with the genre, be it positive or negative. The movie finds that balance between stupid and fun that makes it a great popcorn flick to see on the big screen. There isn't much story here, and the plot is simple to follow, but allows for some amazing earthquake-related visuals. The CGI in this movie is fantastic, and once the action gets going, it is non stop practically up until the credits roll. While these disaster movies certainly have action, one thing I always found them to be lacking was any suspense, as they play out pretty much how you would expect them to, and for the most part, San Andreas is the same way. Like so many other big-budget disaster flicks, San Andreas is a showcase for as much cheesy dialogue and so-so acting as there are visuals. The Rock is always fun to watch in action spectacles, and Paul Giamatti gives a legitimately good performance (despite some of the lines of dialogue he had to say), but for the most part, the acting was nothing more than serviceable. There are many scenes that blow you away with their visuals, but also scenes that you know are impossible, and leave you thinking "there is no way they could have survived that!" Despite these issues that stem from the genre, San Andreas is simplistic enough, and packed with enough visuals and disaster-related scenarios to recommend strongly to fans of this type of movie. It's big, it's fun, it's dumb, and while you could pick it apart, it is certainly a great time at the movies. If you like action CGI fests, then you will love this, and if you don't like this type of movie, then I don't recommend you see it.