Premonition (2005)

I love this movie so much

I gave this film a 9 out of 10, because it was exactly what I expected it to be.

It is interesting even when nothing much happens, which is for most of its 3-hour running time. Read full review

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

A low rent Canadian TV movie that explores the idea of psychic premonitions in much the same way as the likes of THE DEAD ZONE et al. This one brings nothing new to the concept, instead happy to retread old ground in its telling of a man who dies in a car accident, only to be brought back to life with a special talent for foreseeing the future.Casper Van Dien has always been a likable hero, an actor who I've enjoyed seeing since STARSHIP TROOPERS. He's certainly no great shakes as an actor but he has charisma at least, which counts for something. He's the best thing about this otherwise shoddy film, putting plenty of effort into his leading role and handling himself well in the action stakes.Sadly, PREMONITION as a whole is spoilt by a script which copies disaster scenarios from other movies - an earthquake, a train crash which virtually reprises the one in DIE HARD WITH A VENGEANCE - and doesn't have much in the way of originality to it. In addition, the CGI effects of trains, helicopters, and the like are very poor indeed. It's not a terrible film, just a generally lacklustre one.

If you are trying to form an argument against Canadian content laws, using the movie "Premonition" to form your opinion would help greatly. What will quickly strike most viewers is how familiar the core story is, but that is just a minor problem compared to what really sinks the movie. It's written to be a really stupid telling of a familiar story, with characters constantly making idiotic decisions throughout. Also, there are a significant number of plot turns that are either not properly explained, or are not explained at all. All this bad writing probably explains why no one in the cast seems to be trying very hard, with actor Casper Van Dien giving the worst performance of all, a bad performance that generates no sympathy or heart at all. The direction is also hopeless, from letting Van Dien stay unshaven throughout despite being a police officer, to action sequences that lack excitement or comprehension. It also doesn't help that the entire enterprise looks really cheap and cheesy, from the ultra low budget cinematography to some awful special effects (as well as reusing some special effects footage from the superior B movie "Epicenter"). This movie is complete garbage, even for viewers who are especially undemanding with their choice of entertainment.

Bottomline: The terrorists would have died before they could have walked 5 feet with the radioactive material they stole. Information on the source was Cobalt 60 1100 Ci/g 890 g, alpha, gamma. 1st off Cobalt 60 is a beta gamma emitter. It does not decay by alpha emission. They got the specific radioactivity right (1100 Ci/g)but that's about it. The following data is provided to show that anyone near the suitcase would have died in short order:1100 Ci/g X 890 g = 979000 Ci X Gamma Constant 1.32 Rm2/hrCi = 1292280 R/hr @ 1 m = 21538 R/min @ 1 m = 359 R/sec @ 1 m all exposure rates unshieldedMaximum survivable exposure is 1000 R (roentgens). Therefore, a 3 second exposure at 1 meter from this source would be lethal. If the carrying case was lined using 1.57" thick lead sheet (unlikely based on the apparent ease of handling demonstrated) the exposure rate would be reduced to 1/10th. With this assumption it would take 30 seconds of exposure at 1 meter to be lethal.Sources used for sterilization are stored in large pools under stringent access controls which include interlocks, visual and audible alarms and failsafe devices. Postings for the room would not be the jolly rogers and a single radioactive material sign shown. There would be elaborate postings including a "Grave Danger, Very High Radiation Area" and "Danger Radioactive Materials" signs on the door. Signs are yellow with either black or magenta trefoils and lettering, not red and black.I'm a radiation protection specialist

a nuclear terrorist plot behind a back-from-the-dead-visions wrapper; terrible acting with one of those casts consisting of no one you have ever seen before other than the top 2 or 3 folks in the billing; no reality to the actions of the actors in the plot, with the FBI not bothering to follow up on any clues or taking seriously any information given them; the wife limited to a long series of "Oh, Jack.." lines; the kid existing for the sole purpose of being put in danger at just the right moment;a Grade C made-for-2am effort; unlike some bad movies, you realize from the very beginning that this will never start to become interesting; you have to wonder why they bothered with this.