Poseidon is what Titanic has already brought to the big screen. Such plot and story have definitely navigated these waters before. It’s nothing more than a sea travel thriller formula with a ready-made template for filmmakers to fill.
Other Film Reviews from the 2010 Archive: Action, Horror, Supernatural and Suspense Films
This bad disaster movie about a sunken ship is pretty formulaic stuff. What floats somewhat, to survive the deep dullness, is that it can bring some of the viewers into the contemplation of almost two hours of what people do to survive. From the beginning presenting a large and spacious ship sudden-infant-death-syndrome”>a dangerous and claustrophobic death ship Poseidon conveys how about life and death are established. Hence, this remake of Poseidon’s Adventure from 1970 turns out to be a somewhat detached action adventure.
A huge ocean liner is hit by a 150 foot killer tidal wave and capsizes the ship. And like a ticking clock, little by little the ship is destroyed. Panicking, terrified, and trapped within the closed spaces of the submersible, the maverick group of travelers made their way to the surface of the ocean by fleeing through the bottom of the ship which is now above water. It explores ironies and metaphors as the story begins with a magnificent and spacious ship bound for space lacking escapees, along with the lives of the passengers turned upside down along with the ship, through a series of hunts and escapes.
The intensity of Neptune is primarily physical. It has solid special effects, doesn’t drown out the story, and blends seamlessly into the actions and character of the surroundings. At the level of an action movie, this movie is quite nerve-wracking when it taps into the audience’s initial fears. Seeing several survivors struggling through the various labyrinths and passages as a passage between the other poor souls makes it enough to make the fighting popcorn pop. However, the films are used to provide more decorative ideas. It’s action-packed, but it’s completely bare-bones.
Director Wolfgang Petersen knows the tension of the hammer. However, it cannot be carefully explored beyond the stereotypical characters of the movie. It is quite noticeable that the thinly developed writing fell to pieces from the demands of the great action. The balance between the screenplay and the needs of the thriller could have been much better. However, action clichés still make huge waves for those just hanging out and looking to ride.
Kurt Russel provides something workable for history. Josh Lucas keeps the action up and going. The flow of his body, like a character, moves the action quite subtly. Richard Dreyfuss seems too detached. While her character is significant in the story, Jacinda Barrett’s character as a single mother is as predictable and formulaic as most others. She and child actor Jimmy Bennett complete their mother-and-son roles in such a cliched manner. Emmy Rossum is not playing her part. No tension created much emotion between her and Russel. Their father’s daughter relationship is very superficial. He then continues with his relationship with his fiancé, voiced by Mike Vogel.
The story does not give any character enough significant texture. Mia is recovering from the maestro with her “panic acting”. As is usually the case, Black-peas front girl Stacy Ferguson gives the rock music for her role as a cruise ship agent. Rossum-Vogel ultimately has no chemistry at all.
This rough seas of untimely action allows the audience to see how people can and do act in such a life and death situation. The treatment is still very traditional – yielding to the tried and tested box office formula. All the places are there. At least, Neptune tries to connect with the audience based on superficial emotional curves through its dose of drama, tension and excitement.
