The China Syndrome is a 1979 thriller film which tells the story of a reporter and cameramen who discover safety coverups at a nuclear power plant. It stars Jane Fonda, Jack Lemmon, Michael Douglas, Scott Brady, James Hampton, Peter Donat and Wilford Brimley. Image File history File links The China Syndrome DVD cover This image is of a DVD cover, and the copyright for it is most likely owned by either the publisher of the DVD or the studio which produced the movie in question. ... James Bridges (3 February 1936 — 6 June 1993) was an American screenwriter and film director. ... Jane Fonda, 2001 publicity photo Jane Seymour Fonda (born December 21, 1937) is an Academy Award-winning American actor, writer, producer, and political activist. ... Jack Lemmon John Uhler Lemmon III (February 8, 1925 – June 27, 2001), better known as Jack Lemmon, was a Hollywood movie star and one of the most award-winning American actors of his generation. ... Michael Douglas at Naval Air Station Sigonella, Sicily, June 19, 2004 Michael Kirk Douglas (born September 25, 1944 in New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA) is an Oscar winning American actor and producer. ... Brady in He Walked by Night Scott Brady (September 13, 1924-April 16, 1985) was an American film actor. ... Columbia Pictures current logo. ... March 16 is the 75th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (76th in Leap years). ... // Events March 5 - Production begins on Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back. ... // Events March 5 - Production begins on Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back. ... Thriller films are movies that primarily use action and suspense to engage the audience. ... A nuclear power station. ... Jane Fonda, 2001 publicity photo Jane Seymour Fonda (born December 21, 1937) is an Academy Award-winning American actor, writer, producer, and political activist. ... Jack Lemmon John Uhler Lemmon III (February 8, 1925 – June 27, 2001), better known as Jack Lemmon, was a Hollywood movie star and one of the most award-winning American actors of his generation. ... Michael Douglas at Naval Air Station Sigonella, Sicily, June 19, 2004 Michael Kirk Douglas (born September 25, 1944 in New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA) is an Oscar winning American actor and producer. ... Brady in He Walked by Night Scott Brady (September 13, 1924-April 16, 1985) was an American film actor. ... James Hampton (born July 9, 1936) is an American actor best known for his roles in The Doris Day Show, The Longest Yard, Teen Wolf (1985), Police Academy 5: Assignment Miami Beach (1988) and Sling Blade (1996). ... Peter Donat (born 20 January 1928 in Nova Scotia, Canada) is an actor best known for his roles in American television. ... Wilford Brimley as Noa in Ewoks: The Battle for Endor. ...

The movie was written by Mike Gray, T.S. Cook and James Bridges. It was directed by Bridges. The film illustrated the viewpoint that human depravity is of greater safety concern than flaws of technology. Mike Gray is the author of The China Syndrome and Drug Crazy. ... James Bridges (3 February 1936 — 6 June 1993) was an American screenwriter and film director. ... By the mid 20th century humans had achieved a level of technological mastery sufficient to leave the surface of the planet for the first time and explore space. ...

It was nominated for Academy Awards for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Jack Lemmon), Best Actress in a Leading Role (Jane Fonda), Best Art Direction-Set Decoration and Best Writing, Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen. Academy Award The Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are the most prominent film awards in the United States and most watched awards ceremony in the world. ... The Academy Award for Best Actor is one of the awards given to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences; nominations are made by Academy members who are actors and actresses. ... The Academy Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role is one of the awards given to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences; nominations are made by Academy members who are actors and actresses. ... The Academy Awards are the oldest awards ceremony for achievements in motion pictures. ... The Academy Award for Writing Original Screenplay is the Academy Award for the best script not based upon previously published material. ...

The title refers to the concept, mentioned only jokingly in the film, that if an American nuclear plant melts down, it will melt through the Earth until it reaches China. See nuclear meltdown. Earth (often referred to as The Earth) is the third planet in the solar system in terms of distance from the Sun, and the fifth in order of size. ... A nuclear meltdown occurs when the core of a nuclear reactor melts, and is generally considered a serious nuclear accident. ...

The film was released on March 16, 1979, just days before the real-life events at Three Mile Island, Pennsylvania. March 16 is the 75th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (76th in Leap years). ... This page refers to the year 1979. ... Three Mile Island Nuclear Generating Station consists of two nuclear reactors, each with its own containment building and cooling towers. ... Official language(s) None Capital Harrisburg Largest city Philadelphia Area  Ranked 33rd  - Total 46,055 sq. ...

Plot

TV news reporter Kimberly Wells (Fonda) and her cameraman Richard Adams (Douglas) visit the Ventana nuclear power plant outside Los Angeles while doing a series on energy. While viewing the control room there is an earthquake, and subsequently alarms blare inside and the controllers all appear frightened for several minutes as the situation seems momentarily out of control (which the movie viewers and plant operators know was caused by inappropriate actions taken due to false readings from a broken indicator). Adams captures the entire incident on tape, even though it is unauthorized. They present the footage to the television station but the station manager refuses to air it fearing a lawsuit. Wells and Adams begin to investigate the incident further. They later show the footage to a group of nuclear power experts who explain that the reactor had nearly reached a meltdown, which could have killed millions of people. This article is about the largest city in California. ... Control Room is a 2004 documentary film about Al Jazeera and its relations with the US Central Command, as well as the other news organizations that covered the 2003 invasion of Iraq. ...

Meanwhile, plant chief technician Jack Godell (Lemmon), concerned about strange reactor behavior during the earthquake, also uncovers evidence that the plant is unsafe. His attempts to shut down the plant for detailed inspection are squashed by the plant manager. As he drives to a public hearing to give testimony on the safety issues at the power plant, an attempt is made on his life by a contractor whom he had earlier accused of falsifying inspection reports on the plant.

Taking refuge at the secured power plant, he finds that the managers have ordered the reactor to be run at high levels despite knowing about the safety issues. Outraged, Godell forces everyone in the control room out at gunpoint and locks himself inside, lowers the reactor level, and threatens to release radioactive material into the reactor building if anyone tries anything. Then he summons Wells so he can speak about the reactor problems on television. While he is on the air, power plant operators sabotage the reactor and cut off the television transmission. Moments later a SWAT team breaks into the control room and shoots Godell dead.

However, the sabotage unintentionally causes a partial chain reaction where parts of the reactor break apart, threatening a meltdown and "the China Syndrome". However, it still manages to hold together. Outside the plant, mass media that have gathered are confused about what has happened, with energy company officials calling Godell a "disturbed employee". At that point Wells steps in front of the interview and gets a reactor employee to admit that safety issues exist. A nuclear meltdown occurs when the core of a nuclear reactor melts, and is generally considered a serious nuclear accident. ...

Trivia

• Jane Fonda, Jack Lemmon, and Michael Douglas have all won Academy Awards for Leading Roles: Fonda for Klute, for Save the Tiger, and Douglas for Wall Street.
• The Ventana power plant was an homage to the nuclear power plant operated out of Rocketdyne's Santa Susana Field Laboratory outside of Thousand Oaks, California. The county that it was located in was Ventura County, hence Ventana. The reactor at Rocketdyne was the first nuclear reactor in California, and Ventura County's only nuclear plant. The reactor suffered numerous problems and was eventually shut down in the late 1950s. To this day, the reactor building remains, and numerous complaints of radioactivity in the groundsoil (among rocket fuel contamination) has plagued Rocketdyne.
• Aside from background music from radios, jukeboxes and televisions, including the song "Somewhere in Between" over the opening credits, there is no musical soundtrack in the movie. The end credits are played over silence.
• According to American Movie Classics's 2006 series; "Movies That Shook the World" , the Three Mile Island incident did not help "The China Syndrome" at the box office, because the producers did their best to avoid making it look like they were trying to cash in on the event, including pulling the movie from some theaters.

Jane Fonda, 2001 publicity photo Jane Seymour Fonda (born December 21, 1937) is an Academy Award-winning American actor, writer, producer, and political activist. ... Jack Lemmon John Uhler Lemmon III (February 8, 1925 – June 27, 2001), better known as Jack Lemmon, was a Hollywood movie star and one of the most award-winning American actors of his generation. ... Michael Douglas at Naval Air Station Sigonella, Sicily, June 19, 2004 Michael Kirk Douglas (born September 25, 1944 in New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA) is an Oscar winning American actor and producer. ... Academy Award The Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are the most prominent film awards in the United States and most watched awards ceremony in the world. ... Klute is a 1971 film which tells the story of a prostitute who assists a detective in solving a murder mystery. ... Save the Tiger is a 1973 film which tells the story of an ageing businessman whose business is about to collapse under his juggling of the books. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... F-1 rocket engine Rocketdyne is the premier rocket engine design and production company in the United States. ... Thousand Oaks (commonly referred to by locals as T.O.) is a city located in Ventura County, California, in the United States. ... Ventura County is part of the Greater Los Angeles Area, located on Californias Pacific coast. ... AMC was originally a basic cable channel that aired classic movies, largely pre-1950s, in a commercial-free, generally unedited format. ...

External links

• The China Syndrome at The Internet Movie Database
• Which came first in 1979, The movie or the Three Mile Island meltdown?
• "The China Syndrome: A Dead On Case of Life Imitating Art" by David Lawson