Fun on the water
Seeing the made for TV version on TV here in Japan is what inspired me to watch the other versions of this disaster-at-sea movie. 'Titanic' has nothing to fear from these soggy stories.
The one that started it all. A wave capsizes an ocean liner on New Year's Eve. The ship flips upside down and a motley crew of survivors must navigate their way upwards, towards the bottom of the ship, through a maze of perils. A decent movie formula that has been duplicated many times since. I was delighted to see Leslie Nielson in the role of the ship's captain early on but he plays the straight-man here unfortunately, nothing like his infamous Lt Drebbin. Gene Hackman is really good as the brave, nearly foolhardy priest who leads the rag tag band. Ernest Borgnine is also here as the doubting Thomas who provides the annoying counterbalance to Hackman. I haven't liked Borgnine in anything I've seen him in and this is no exception. This is certainly not a great, or even pretty good, movie but its campiness makes it a bit fun. 5/10
This made-for-TV movie was obviously rushed out to profit on the upcoming Hollywood movie. I think it's also supposed to dupe some people into buying the wrong DVD when they think they are getting the new big budget version. This was one of the worst movies I have ever seen. Everything about it stunk. The plot was changed so that it's not a wave that overturns the ship but a bomb set by Middle Eastern terrorists. A brief explanation is given by a member of the crew as to why the explosion caused the ship to flip upsidedown but it really doesn't make any sense. All the shots of the ship are done with CG and they look REALLY bad. Smoke coming from one of the propellors underwater is just a bunch of black squares shooting out. The cast list is also stellar: Adam Baldwin in the lead (no relation to the Baldwin gang, but he was worse than the CG), Rutger Hauer (all down hill since Blade Runner), Steve Guttenberg and C Thomas Howell. You can basically predict who is going to die based on the fact that this movie was produced by the Hallmark comapany. The 'whore' who the married man sleeps with... dead. The real annoying guy... dead. And the dangers they encounter are just riduculous. In one room the characters have to cross a narrow beam one by one as a fire rages below. It's not just any normal fire though. No, this CG fire looks like the surface of the sun itself. I don't know what could possibly be burning down there to cause this. And while the ship is supposed to be sinking the entire time shots of the ship from the outside just after the flip and at the end of the movie show that it hasn't sunk at all. I must admit that IMDB has this movie clocked in at 170 odd minutes. Here in Japan we got a 2 hours version with commercials included. Thank the Emperor for small miracles. 1/10
This latest incarnation was supposed to blow too. However I didn't find it all that bad, especially after watching the first two films. Director Wolfgang Peterson (Das Boot, The Perfect Storm) certainly knows how to make a sea film. The CG here is great and the disaster is quite realistic and frightening. It's still not as goos as what was accomplished in 'Titanic' though. This time around it's Kurt Russell and Josh Lucas leading the survivors. Russell is good although he's basically playing the same part he played in 'Backdraft'. One particularily strong scene has the survivors trapped in a horizontal air vent as the water begins rising and engulfing them one by one. One of the women is claustrophobic and you really feel her fear as she begins thrashing about in the narrow space, trapped on the ladder under the others. Worth a rent if you're in the mood for an action flick. 7/10
Movie Review: The Poseidon Adventure (1972)
The one that started it all. A wave capsizes an ocean liner on New Year's Eve. The ship flips upside down and a motley crew of survivors must navigate their way upwards, towards the bottom of the ship, through a maze of perils. A decent movie formula that has been duplicated many times since. I was delighted to see Leslie Nielson in the role of the ship's captain early on but he plays the straight-man here unfortunately, nothing like his infamous Lt Drebbin. Gene Hackman is really good as the brave, nearly foolhardy priest who leads the rag tag band. Ernest Borgnine is also here as the doubting Thomas who provides the annoying counterbalance to Hackman. I haven't liked Borgnine in anything I've seen him in and this is no exception. This is certainly not a great, or even pretty good, movie but its campiness makes it a bit fun. 5/10Movie Review: The New Poseidon Adventure (2005)
This made-for-TV movie was obviously rushed out to profit on the upcoming Hollywood movie. I think it's also supposed to dupe some people into buying the wrong DVD when they think they are getting the new big budget version. This was one of the worst movies I have ever seen. Everything about it stunk. The plot was changed so that it's not a wave that overturns the ship but a bomb set by Middle Eastern terrorists. A brief explanation is given by a member of the crew as to why the explosion caused the ship to flip upsidedown but it really doesn't make any sense. All the shots of the ship are done with CG and they look REALLY bad. Smoke coming from one of the propellors underwater is just a bunch of black squares shooting out. The cast list is also stellar: Adam Baldwin in the lead (no relation to the Baldwin gang, but he was worse than the CG), Rutger Hauer (all down hill since Blade Runner), Steve Guttenberg and C Thomas Howell. You can basically predict who is going to die based on the fact that this movie was produced by the Hallmark comapany. The 'whore' who the married man sleeps with... dead. The real annoying guy... dead. And the dangers they encounter are just riduculous. In one room the characters have to cross a narrow beam one by one as a fire rages below. It's not just any normal fire though. No, this CG fire looks like the surface of the sun itself. I don't know what could possibly be burning down there to cause this. And while the ship is supposed to be sinking the entire time shots of the ship from the outside just after the flip and at the end of the movie show that it hasn't sunk at all. I must admit that IMDB has this movie clocked in at 170 odd minutes. Here in Japan we got a 2 hours version with commercials included. Thank the Emperor for small miracles. 1/10Movie Review: Poseidon (2006)
This latest incarnation was supposed to blow too. However I didn't find it all that bad, especially after watching the first two films. Director Wolfgang Peterson (Das Boot, The Perfect Storm) certainly knows how to make a sea film. The CG here is great and the disaster is quite realistic and frightening. It's still not as goos as what was accomplished in 'Titanic' though. This time around it's Kurt Russell and Josh Lucas leading the survivors. Russell is good although he's basically playing the same part he played in 'Backdraft'. One particularily strong scene has the survivors trapped in a horizontal air vent as the water begins rising and engulfing them one by one. One of the women is claustrophobic and you really feel her fear as she begins thrashing about in the narrow space, trapped on the ladder under the others. Worth a rent if you're in the mood for an action flick. 7/10
posted by Jason at 8:39 AM
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