Having seen so many Hollywood films borrow and steal from Japanese cinema, here’s is your chance to see the Japanese equivalent of an American blockbuster… but is it worth it?

When an underwater earthquake strikes deep beneath Suruga Bay it proves to be just the first in a series of devastating natural disasters to hit Japan in quick succession. Soon the entire nation and its people are under assault from further earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions caused by massive tectonic shifting in the area.

Geological research into the events reveals the governments worst fears Japan has less than a year before Mount Fuji itself erupts and the entire country sinks into the sea disappearing from the face of the earth forever! As cities are reduced to rubble by quakes and tidal waves, the government begins immediate evacuation plans, but it quickly becomes obvious that only a fraction of the population is likely to survive. With nothing left to lose, devise a desperate plan to avert the final disaster by planting and detonating huge explosives deep in the earths crust.

Caught up in the ongoing chaos are three inpiduals united by their calamitous circumstances: research submarine pilot, Toshio Onoder; rescue worker, Reiko Abe; and a young orphan girl, Misaki Kuraki. Together, they struggle to survive as the fate of the nation hangs precariously in the balance. But what they are yet to learn is that one of them will be called upon to make the ultimate sacrifice in an act of bravery that could save people and the country they love.

I suppose there is something to be said about a film which is clearly not in the least bit interested in originality, other than moving the setting and focus of a major US city to a different country. We may have grown accostumed to (and indeed tired of) the heroism on display in American films of this genre, but it interesting to see how other cultures would cope.

Normally one of the first places to get wiped out in global disasters on a cinematic canvas (along with Big Ben and the Eiffel Tower), here the carnage lasts long enough for us to see some stories of survival. The special effects are fine (if not that special) but the acting is about average for a film of this kind. The film is also about 30 minutes too long making you care less about the characters as time drags on… but still keeps you just about on side for the most part.

So is it worth it? Well put it this way, i’d rather watch this than another Emmerich blockbuster.

Sinking Of Japan (cert. 12) will be released on DVD (15.99) by MVM on 8th March 2010.