This unique Chinese disaster flick begins in an indeterminate past on the island of Tianhuo, a beautiful and tropical island on the Pacific Ring of Fire with a ticking time bomb at its center. The volcano erupts, killing many villagers and researchers.
Years later, professor Wentao Li (Xueqi Wang) and his daughter Meng (Hannah Quinlivan), both survivors of the disaster, are at odds about the safety of the island. Meng Li and a young but expert team of volcanologists are hard at work mapping the volcano and installing all matter of sensors, some deep within the magma chamber, in the hopes of detecting and avoiding another similar disaster in the future.
They are funded by pie-in-the-sky business magnate Jack Harris (Jason Issacs) who has gone into considerable debt building a luxury resort at the base of the slumbering mountain. The scientists begin their first trial run of the mapping and detection system when all hell breaks loose. Everything falls to pieces as the action starts and doesn’t stop. Father and daughter do their best to make sure their rag-tag team of survivors make it off the island while learning to trust and forgive each other for a past neither of them could control.
There were some elements of this film I didn’t care for, such as the nearly 5 minute underwater proposal scene between two minor characters and the Jurassic Park-esque resort exposition, but beyond those minor complaints, I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. Skyfire isn’t going to win any Academy Awards, but it is non-stop entertainment. The stunt driving, chaos, and destruction on display throughout the entire film make it worth a watch. Action movie fans will love this flick. The few dramatic elements on display are well-paced during breaths in the action.
There are a few plot holes, but the viewer is too busy watching the barrage of fire and rock to keep track of them. The heroic nature of the main characters alongside their imminent doom if they don’t leave the island keeps you hooked from the start of the action until their eventual rescue. The English dub is wanting, but the emotions of the actors carry better in Mandarin, and the subtitles hold more subtlety in their translations. All told, Skyfire is an excellent addition to the disaster subgenre and is recommended to anyone looking to expand their action film collection.