10 Movies That Tried To Change Cinema Forever (And Failed)

8. Earthquake Introduced Ultra-Bassy "Sensurround"

Though there have been countless attempts to innovate the look of a film with IMAX and 3D presentation, innovations in sound are generally far less-publicised, if only because the general public has a far more limited understanding of the aural exhibition of a movie.

But for Universal's 1974 disaster flick Earthquake, they boldly shipped a series of gigantic sub-woofers to cinemas and pumped 120 decibels of "infra bass" into screens during the film's destruction scenes, hoping to replicate the feeling of an actual, life-threatening calamity.

During a test screening, the speakers' bass was intense enough to crack the ceiling's plaster, such that when the film was released and re-screened there months later, a net had to be installed to catch any falling debris. Yikes.

Despite Earthquake grossing almost $80 million against a $7 million budget, seemingly making the experiment a success, it was employed on just three more movies throughout the '70s before being quietly phased out.

The attempt to shine a light on the immersive power of sound was admirable, but if the modern film market is any indication, a hefty IMAX sound system is enough.

People don't want to feel like they might burst an eardrum or, you know, get smacked with actual debris.