'' The China Syndrome '' has been described as a " gripping 1979 drama about the dangers of nuclear power " which had an extra impact when the real-life accident at the Three Mile Island nuclear plant occurred several weeks after the film opened . Jane Fonda plays a TV reporter who witnesses a near-meltdown ( the " China syndrome " of the title ) at a local nuclear plant , which was averted by a quick-thinking engineer , played by Jack Lemmon . The plot suggests that corporate greed and cost-cutting " have led to potentially deadly faults in the plant 's construction "
Three Mile Island nuclear plant
Three Mile Island accident
Anti-nuclear movement