brettlaguinn The China syndrome starts with a bang- Jane Fonda and Michael Douglas are at a nuclear power plant when something goes wrong and they manage to capture it on camera. What follows is an investigation into the cover ups that ensues to make sure there is no panic. All the actors are very good here- Douglas and Fonda as the determined young reporters, Jack lemmon as the shift supervisor who unfortunately gets the blame. The pacing is great and the opening scene with the meltdown are genuinely terrifying.

aci-4 This is for sure one of the most realistic movies i have ever seen ! Great stuff from the 70s , VERY GOOD acting , and simply its almost as if watching a documentary rather then a Hollywood movie.

asc85 According to Wikipedia as I compose this review, the Three Mile Island accident happened 12 days after the release of this picture. I remember seeing it the Friday night it opened, and it blew me away. Over time, I think Apocalypse Now has become the better picture of 1979, but at that time, I thought it was the best film of 1979.The problem with this movie was that it became more of a political movie after TMI, rather than the thriller with which it was originally intended. It's of course impossible to view this movie without factoring in what occurred at TMI. You can't "un-ring the bell," as they say. I was lucky to watch it without the taint of TMI, but of course, not too many people can say that. Jack Lemmon has the performance of the movie. I'm a fan of Jane Fonda, but I didn't think she was plausible in the role of a TV reporter.

SnoopyStyle Kimberly Wells (Jane Fonda) is a local L.A. TV reporter who does puff pieces. She and cameraman Richard Adams (Michael Douglas) are sent to do a simple report on the Ventawa Nuclear Power Plant run by California Gas and Electric. While filming in the control room, they witness a near meltdown. Manager Jack Godell (Jack Lemmon) saves the day. Richard is able to film the accident but the report is shelved under pressure. The accident is covered up under an investigation. Jack does his own digging. The plant gets a clean bill of health and is started up again. He's still a true believer until he discovers some more things wrong. Meanwhile Richard has stolen the film and has shown it to some experts.This is a great 70s disaster thriller except the big disaster doesn't actually happen. Jack Lemmon is terrific. Fonda and Douglas are fine as nosy media. Actually Fonda is not as aggressive as the stereotype would suggest. It's very much in Lemmon where the humanity lays. The pacing is actually quite compelling considering most of it is just investigations. It's also insanely timely coming out just before the Three Mile Island accident.