World Famous Comics: Poseidon (Widescreen Edition)
Poseidon (Widescreen Edition)
Starring: Josh Lucas, Kurt Russell, Jacinda Barrett, Richard Dreyfuss, Emmy Rossum Directed By: Wolfgang Petersen Average Rating: Aspect Ratio: 1.66:1 Audience Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested) Binding: DVD Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD-Video, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC Label: Warner Home Video Number of Items: 1 Region Code: 1 Release Date: August 22, 2006 Running Time: 98 minutes Theatrical Release Date: May 12, 2006
Description: When a rogue wave capsizes a luxury cruise ship in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, a small group of survivors find themselves unlikely allies in a battle for their lives. As the unstable vessel rapidly floods with water, they face unimaginable odds and life-altering decisions in their desperate fight to the surface.
Amazon.com: The 1972 disaster hit The Poseidon Adventure was ripe for a big-budget CGI remake, and who better to helm it than thriller expert Wolfgang Petersen, director of Das Boot and The Perfect Storm? It hardly matters that a TV movie remake (also based on Paul Gallico's original 1969 source novel) was made less than a year before, because Petersen's version is far more spectacular, with shocking digital effects, massive sets, amazing stunt-work and enough fire and water to fill five movies with challenging worst-case scenarios. Once again, the plot concerns the capsizing (by a massive "rogue wave") of a state-of-the-art luxury liner, and the struggle of a small group of survivors (including Josh Lucas, Kurt Russell, Emmy Rossum, and Richard Dreyfuss) to climb upwards, to the ship's hull, in their treacherous quest for a safe exit. Unfortunately, most of these characters are two-dimensional and under-developed (especially when compared to the 1972 film's all-star cast), and the unimaginative screenplay by Mark Protosevich (reportedly worked on by several uncredited writers) subjects them to a rote series of obstacles that grow increasingly routine and repetitious, not to mention contrived and illogical. Again, it hardly matters, because Petersen's handling of non-stop action is so slick and professional that Poseidon gets by on sheer adrenaline. The capsizing scenes are nothing less than awesome, with some effects so real (and so horrifying) that younger and more sensitive viewers may need to look away. And while it lacks the engaging humanity of the 1972 version, Poseidon is certainly never boring. Faint praise, perhaps, but you'll get your popcorn's worth of mindless entertainment. --Jeff Shannon
DISAPPOINTMENT... 7 OUT OF 10 Oh Kurt Russel, what happened to you? Your roles in movies like The Thing and 3000 Miles to Graceland were great, and now you're like a cheap prostitute for a movie role. You just had to pick a worthless role of a father of a teenage daughter with all the stupid drama thrown in... a disaster movie. Great.... WHAT IT'S ABOUT: Think of this movie as a combination of Titanic and The Perfect Storm. Then, remove the great characters and replace them with characters so worthless you care less about them being killed than stupid teenagers who get killed in horror movies, and then add liberal politics into the mix. During a cruise on the Poseidon, a gigantic freak wave causes the ship to capsize (flip upside down), trapping several people on board with a limited air bubble while they wait for help to come. But, a group of people decide not to wait and try to escape; a gambler, the gambler's smuggled girlfriend, a homosexual old man (Uuuugggghhhh....), an annoying kid (Why couldn't you drown in the movie?) and his mom, the mayor of New York (Kurt Russel), his daughter, and her boyfriend. MUSIC: The music is bland and rarely sets the mood. It can at key moments, but fails to the rest of the time. ACTION: The best parts of the film are scenes with the ship being flipped over, people drowning, things being turned over and destroyed, explosions, and some extra action. The action is the best part, too bad the whole film couldn't be filled with a lot more of those moments. ACTING: The script is full of predictable dialogue, and the actors don't do a very good job bringing the already sub-par script to life. Their acting capabilities are laughable at best. ENTERTAINMENT: You will only want to watch this movie for the action scenes, not really anything else. If you wish to see all of it, I hope you have humor, because you will only get pissed off if you don't. Take advantage of the flaws and laugh at them, because they are laughable (Yay! We've escaped! Oh look, there just so happens to be a raft over there). OVERALL: I would only recommend this as a rental for now, not a buy. I managed to take advantage of the flaws and laugh at them for how bad they were, but this film was overall very disappointing and had so much more potential. Plus, adding politics into the mix, kinda ruins the experience. Decent overall, but disappointing. THE GOOD: The action moments. THE BAD: The acting, the politics, predictable dialogue and events, unintentionally funny.
Nice Effects and great movie! I just got done watching this movie a couple nights ago. It was a great movie! The visual effects were outstanding and the plot and characters were awesome! It was really fun watching this movie and I highly recommend it!!!
Big Boat Go Flop! The original Poseidon Adventure was Irwin Allen in his disaster film best...ensemble acting with a tragedy to work through. He worked that formula like no-one else...so when Wolfgang Petersen went to remake it, he did what he should have. He scrapped what Allen was magic at and inserted his own strength in their place. Which meant characters that might not be the most interesting, but working as a team to overcome the odds (think Das Boot).
To that end, his "Poseidon" is a faster paced, tighter and shorter movie than Allen's and moves at such a tear that it's hard to notice when it falters. The cast is helmed by Kurt Russell (playing troubled macho as only he can), Josh Lucas (loner gambler subbing for Gene Hackman's loner priest) and Richard Dreyfuss (gay man just jilted by his ex for a younger man). Along with seven other survivors, this group must battle fire, water and the clock to climb up the ship to safety.
Minus the 3-dimensional characters, Petersen gives us a 3-dimensional ship. The effects are a marvel (the bonus disc shows you just how few CGI effects were used) and the opening wave scene is visceral in its blunt force. The capsizing boat, with the ensuing death and the mayhem, will scare the saltwater out of you. Maybe even more so than some horror movies. Little time is wasted between survival episodes, although the nod to Shelly Winters' swim team dialog from the original is a nice touch. The survivors overcome obstacle after peril and each more tense than the last.
There is, naturally, a happy ending. Just who makes it out and how is the fun of "Poseidon." Once it's over, make sure to watch the DVD extras, with the Crew Diary being interesting and the Special Effects feature fascinating.
Was ok Can't top the original, they try to improve but loss some of the best original scenes...like Shelley Winters great part almost at the end of the movie.
Worst of the Three By FAR I assume some people might find this film interesting simply because the special effects are considerably better than "The Poseidon Adventure." However, that being said, the film becomes boring quickly. I found the acting poor and the scripting even worse. (If I could have, I would have given this film 0 stars.)
In "The Poseidon Adventure" a few talented actors and actresses carry the production. (I especially enjoyed Gene Hackman's role as the pastor). John William's fine scores, and the Academy Award winning "The Morning After" are also enjoyable.
These above items save "The Poseidon Adventure" from being a bore. Because the acting in "Poseidon" is poor, and the scripting and music are even poorer, there is nothing to save this film, which is probably why there are so many used copies available for 50 cents or fewer. (Note that currently the lowest used copy of "The Poseidon Adventure" is about 7 dollars).
Simply put, if you own "The Poseidon Adventure", enjoy it. If you don't own any Poseidon film, purchase (or rent) "The Poseidon Adventure" starring Gene Hackman or even the Hallmark "The Poseidon Adventure" with Adam Baldwin and Bryan Brown.
Anything Goes Trivia
Trevor
Megaton Man
