The SciFi channel is awesome. They crank out lower budget flicks with pretty much the same theme:
Something bad happens + Someone saves the day = Happy Ending
There are variables in this formula such as the bad guy, the good guy, the disaster, etc. For the most part, though, they are enjoyable. They don’t rise to the level of being great, but that’s ok.
Path of Destruction is one of those movies where you assemble an affordable cast, throw in some cut rate special effects and have at it. The plot is easy to follow. A nasty corporation developed a nanoprobe weapon for the United States, but the United States cut off funding. The corporation was supposed to store the nanoprobes in an offshore oil rig and leave them dormant. They didn’t. They continued development and planned on selling them to the Chinese. Yes, the Chinese have now become the Russians in any bad guy movie.
Suffice to say that something goes wrong. The oil rig blows up and the nanoprobes are unleashed into the atmosphere. They hitch a ride on a storm system and sweep down the western coast of the United States. Here’s an example of the destruction they leave in their wake. Remember, this is SciFi special, special effects:
With special effects that good, you need a killer cast. This movie actually has a pretty good cast. The top three actors are:
Danica McKellar: Better known as Winnie Cooper from the Wonder Years, I had no idea she was still acting. The last I heard she was a mathematician or something. She plays the heroine of the movie, an under cover reported sniffing around on the oil rig. I’m sorry, but she still looks like Winnie Cooper.
David Keith: Mr. Uber Bad Guy. You can’t even complain about his acting, because he own the bad guy roles. He stars as the owner/chairman of the evil corporation. In one of the funnier scenes in the movie, he speaks on the phone with the Chinese trying to bargain for political exile.
Chris Pratt: CHE! My boy from the OC! I had no idea he had a career prior to the OC. In this movie he plays the hero, a nerdy fellow specializing in weather. He does go over the top by calling the storms cute names, but he actually brings a sense of action to the role. It’s amazing the range he has in acting.
I won’t spoil the ending, but here are some things to ask yourself when you finish watching the movie:
Out of an entire air force they chose that person to deliver the weapon?
Aren’t private planes checked for bad things?
Would you think oil rigs would have a better evacuation plan?