One thing I do have to say for When Time Ran Out. There is some lovely Hawaiian scenery in it. That's a plus for any film.<br /><br />But this film may have killed the disaster film genre. Might have had a lot to do with the death of the big budget soap opera as well. At least it got a lease on life on television during the eighties.<br /><br />Bad guy in this film is James Franciscus who thought it would be a grand idea to build a resort hotel on a small Hawaiian island with an active volcano. Great tourist attraction. He's not happy just growing sugar cane like his dad did and becoming filthy rich. He wants to become richer and he does become filthier.<br /><br />He marries Bill Holden's daughter, Veronica Hamel, to get to Holden's money. Holden is a Conrad Hilton type hotel magnate.<br /><br />Meanwhile another Franciscus enterprise is an oil well which Paul Newman has brought in. All their drilling is giving the volcano an upset tummy.<br /><br />Of course we've got some grand soap opera type romantic conflicts. Newman and Holden over Jacqueline Bisset, Franciscus stepping out with Barbara Carrera on Veronica Hamel with Edward Albert objecting big time. Dynasty can't hold a candle to this bunch.<br /><br />Irwin Allen ripped himself off also. The characters that Burgess Meredith and Valentina Cortesa play are an Italian version of who Jack Albertson and Shelley Winters played in The Poseidon Adventure.<br /><br />Newman, Holden, Red Buttons, Ernest Borgnine all veterans of Irwin Allen disaster films from before just go through the motions here.<br /><br />What did they get out of it? A big paycheck and a Hawaiian vacation. That's probably reason enough to do this film as time finally ran out on the disaster film.