Earthquake is a 1974 American ensemble disaster drama film directed and produced by Mark Robson and starring Charlton Heston and Ava Gardner. The plot concerns the struggle for survival after a catastrophic earthquake destroys most of the city of Los Angeles, California.
Directed by Robson with a screenplay by George Fox and Mario Puzo, the film starred a large cast of well-known actors, including Heston, Gardner, George Kennedy, Lorne Greene, Geneviève Bujold, Richard Roundtree, Marjoe Gortner, Barry Sullivan, Lloyd Nolan, Victoria Principal, and (under an alias) Walter Matthau. It is notable for the use of an innovative sound effect called Sensurround, which created the sense of actually experiencing an earthquake in theatres.
Plot
Athletic former college football star Stewart Graff (Charlton Heston), in a dysfunctional marriage to Remy (Ava Gardner), is arguing with her after she fakes another suicide attempt when a mild earthquake jolts the Los Angeles metro area. Angered by his wife's manipulations, Graff leaves for work, stopping to visit Denise Marshall (Genevieve Bujold), a part-time actress and widow of a co-worker who he assigned to the project that accidentally killed him. Feeling obligated to help her and her ten-year-old son, Corry, Graff brings the boy an autographed football from his college days, and briefly helps Denise rehearse her lines before a film shoot she has later that morning.
Los Angeles Police Department officer Lew Slade (George Kennedy) is in pursuit of a car thief, when intercepted by a rival deputy from the neighboring Los Angeles County Sheriff district when he crosses jurisdictional lines. Already enemies who have had run-ins with each other over previous incidents, Slade hits the deputy, resulting in his suspension. Disheartened, Slade heads to a neighborhood bar.
At the California Seismological Institute (CSI), junior seismologist Walter Russell (Kip Niven) has analyzed the minor quake, and calculated that Los Angeles will suffer a major earthquake within the next two days. After head seismologist, Dr. Stockle (Barry Sullivan) and associate Dr. Johnson (Donald Moffat) determine the hypothesis probable, they contact the mayor of Los Angeles (John Randolph) who, fearful of the social and political consequences, decides to tell the Governor of California only to alert the National Guard and police as a precaution, so that they can be ready to mobilize.
In a vacant lot, motorcycle daredevil Miles Quade (Richard Roundtree) and his manager and mechanic, Sal Amici (Gabriel Dell), have set up a wild stunt track with loops and jumps, hoping to impress a Las Vegas promoter, so he will book their act at a hotel. Sal's sister, Rosa Amici (Victoria Principal), is unconvinced that the stunt will work, fears that Miles will be severely injured in the attempt, and refuses to help either of them in its promotion, storming off in anger.
Grocery store manager Jody Joad (Marjoe Gortner), who is very attracted to Rosa (a store customer), is a member of a National Guard unit being called up, and he heads home to change into his uniform. His abusive housemates continually taunt him, and harass him for having posters of male bodybuilders on his wall, using homophobic slurs.
A second small tremor cancels Denise's film shoot for the day, so she goes to meet her friend Barbara (Monica Lewis), a secretary at Graff's engineering firm. Graff bumps into Denise in the building's lobby, where they agree to share a drink for lunch. The pair instead go back to Denise's house, where they make love for the first time. Wrapped up in the moment, Graff asks Denise to come to Oregon with him, and bring Corry, while he works on a hydroelectric dam project that summer.
Returning to work, Graff's boss and father-in-law, Sam Royce (Lorne Greene), unexpectedly offers Stewart the company presidency. Stewart calls Denise to tell her he cannot see her that evening, when she tells him she wants to go to Oregon with him. Conflicted between the relationship and the promotion, Graff nevertheless goes to Sam's office to accept his offer. He is stunned to find Remy there, correctly assuming she convinced Sam to offer the promotion to save their marriage, and he storms off, where he admits the affair with Denise, and the end of their marriage.
As Remy follows him out of the building into the street, an earthquake measuring 9.9 on the Richter Scale strikes, destroying much of Los Angeles.