Volcano

In this big-budget disaster epic, an earthquake turns the City of Angels into Dante's inferno. As soon as the tremor subsides, workers race off to assess the damage. Director of the Office of Emergency management Mike Roark (Tommy Lee Jones) is one of those workers. Though on vacation at the time, he is dedicated to his job and wastes no time getting back to the city, accompanied by his whiny 13-year-old daughter Kelly (Gaby Hoffmann). As the situation heats up and the eruption begins in earnest, Mike teams up with attractive seismologist Dr. Amy Barnes (Anne Heche) to help save the city. The myriad of dazzling special effects and explosive pace helps compensate for the caldera-sized plot holes. One of the production highlights is the 80% life-size set of Wilshire Boulevard between the LaBrea tar pits and Wilshire Avenue. By the story's climax, this set has been demolished by the eruption. Those Angelenos in the audience may expect a number of inside jokes and pokes at L.A. life.