Deep Impact
A journalist, a teenage comet discoverer, and a multinational space crew confront humanity's final countdown as Earth faces an extinction-level impact.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- brooding
- earnest
- foreboding
- disaster movie night
- 1990s blockbuster marathon
What critics said
Critics broadly found the film thoughtful and ambitious in its disaster premise but undermined by melodramatic subplots, weak tension, and uneven performances.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
The story intercuts Jenny Lerner's investigation, Leo Biederman's discovery, President Beck's decisions, the space mission, and families preparing for extinction.
The comet threat prompts presidential secrecy, a joint us-russian mission, and special measures intended to preserve humanity.
The impending impact forces characters including Jenny, Leo, and their relatives to confront separation, mortality, and the future of their families.
The film moves between television journalism, domestic and civic spaces, astronomical observation, space operations, and global impact devastation.
Films like Deep Impact, and why
Armageddon
shared comet-impact premise, large-scale disaster spectacle, space mission, and human survival drama
The Day After Tomorrow
shared extinction-level threat, space technology, international cooperation, and earnest disaster melodrama
2012
shared global catastrophe, political response, family separation, and emotional survival stakes
When Worlds Collide
shared serious science fiction tone, planetary crisis, and emphasis on ordinary people facing extinction
Movie Details
- Director
- Mimi Leder
- Release Date
- 1998-05-08
- Runtime
- 122 min
- Rating
- 6.3 / 10 (3483)
Cast
- Robert Duvall
- Téa Leoni
- Elijah Wood
- Vanessa Redgrave
- Morgan Freeman
- Maximilian Schell
- James Cromwell
- Ron Eldard
- Jon Favreau
- Laura Innes
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Paramount+ Amazon Channel, AMC+ Amazon Channel, Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand, Plex
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Deep Impact about?
- A journalist, a teenage comet discoverer, and a multinational space crew confront humanity's final countdown as Earth faces an extinction-level impact.
- What is Deep Impact like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Deep Impact as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Deep Impact violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Deep Impact as mild.
- What did critics think of Deep Impact?
- Critics broadly found the film thoughtful and ambitious in its disaster premise but undermined by melodramatic subplots, weak tension, and uneven performances.
- Which films are like Deep Impact?
- Films with a similar feel include Armageddon, The Day After Tomorrow, 2012, and When Worlds Collide.
- How long is Deep Impact?
- Deep Impact runs 122 minutes.
- Where can I watch Deep Impact?
- In United States, Deep Impact streams on Paramount+ Amazon Channel, AMC+ Amazon Channel, Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel.
