Hollywood has had a long time obsession with how the world will end. Films such as Armageddon, Deep Impact, The Terminator series, The Matrix series, and films like Independence Day all have an apocalyptic theme to them and get us to question what the “end” will actually be like? Moreover, what comes next? Heaven? The New Earth? New dimensions? Roland Emmerich’s new film, 2012, takes on those questions by beginning to deal with 2012 theory and “end time” ideologies. Emmerich has done a couple of different films that deal with elements of the end of the world; Independence Day and The Day After Tomorrow also have similar themes.

But what about 2012? Is it true? What’s up with the Mayan’s predicting the end of the world? Are we headed for doom? Well, I wont’ bore you with the details of 2012 theory; you can look that up on your own time. Just Google “2012” and you will almost be assaulted with information regarding 2012; but I do recommend checking it out.

Are we headed for disaster? Well, if we read our sacred texts correctly, almost every religion teaches about some type of apocalyptic event taking place as the final stand for human kind. But when will it happen? Today? Tomorrow? Tomorrow night? December 21, 2012? Well, if you follow your “end of time” calendars correctly, some of the first predictions of the end of the world started way back when during Christ’s time. Many of the disciples took Jesus’ words literally, when he said he was going to prepare a place for them—they kind of thought he would be right back. Recent end of the world predictions started around 1450 when people thought some mathematical equation equaled up to the end of the world. And who can forget 1845. People sold off property, emptied wallets, and some even committed suicide; all because several folk had, predicted God arriving on Earth during that year and the end of the world taking place. What about 12/31/99? Planes were supposed to be falling out the sky and cats and dogs were supposed to be living together—a real bru-ha-ha. I guess they were wrong.

Humans and societies have tended to be almost obsessed with “end times” which tends to drive a lot of really “far out” worldviews on the apocalypse. However, the film 2012 puts into play some of our worse fears—the future and the unknown. 2012 theory has been around for quite sometime and the film puts those theories into play and gives the audience something to think about—like, is this really going to happen? I can assure you, come 2012, there will be hysteria similar to that of the Y2K scare about ten years ago.

2012 does ask the very real question though: What would the world governments do to prepare for the end of the world? (And they actually answer the question) Nothing. This is both true and false. This is where the plot thickens. It’s true because if, the governments were privy to information regarding the end of the world and then verified that information, you can bet your bottom dollar that they’d do everything they could to protect their assets. Moreover, you can bet that they would take care of those with upper class status—those who could actually afford to survive. The film deals well with the issue of class and privilege, and not necessarily from a racial point, but from a money point—if you’re able to afford one (or more) of the seats on the boat’s they’re building, then you survive. If you are a state head and or dignitary, then you live. But if you’re just an average “Joe,” then you had better be prayed up.

But tell me, how would governments prepare over 6 billion people to survive global destruction? And if the global destruction was coming from God, how does one avoid that? Should each tribe take care of its own and choose who should live and who should die? Why should money play a factor in this type of event?

So, does money dominate our world? Have we sold our souls for the dollar? Is that God’s Kingdom, those who can afford to be there? Have we turned our society into an auction event? And how does human kindness play a role in all this chaos? One of the main themes that Emmerich throws around in the film is this issue of class and status. Who will survive you ask? Well, Emmerich paints a new world of high-class citizens that are comprised of rich, educated, upper class people. Moreover, Emmerich toys with the notion that this might be the new society “we” actually want—a society free of crime, bad people, immigrants, and immoral lifestyles….right? I mean, the “good people” survived, right? What would the world look like with a higher class of folks? Moreover, how would society operate knowing over half its species was wiped out and there might have been something they could have done to prevent some of those deaths? What is this “new Earth?”

Emmerich has us to deal with some of these issues and the reality of being able to pay your way for many things. While the graphics were great, and the story line was decent, the main issue here is how “human” are we? How are we treating our fellow person in this life now? Are we using people and loving things? Have we lost our way? Does the world recycle itself every 650,000 years? Where is God in all of this? Whew! Deep stuff to ponder as we head towards 12/21/12!