What would you do if you were on a luxury cruise ship that capsized? Better question, what would Kurt Russell do? Would he give up, or would he trek through the bowels of the ship with a group of quirky survivors? If you were the ship's Captain, would you follow Kurt or would you stay in the main ballroom with Fergie? Decisions, decisions. Personally, I would head to the area of the boat closest to the bar.
Director Wolfgang Peterson (Das Boot, Air Force One and The Perfect Storm) has managed to create a suspenseful thriller, that at heart is a monster movie. Although I am not exactly sure what the monster is exactly. The monster could be the 150 foot high Rogue Wave that topples the 20 story tall luxury cruise ship, The Poseidon . Or the monster could be the ship itself that essentially becomes a deathtrap for the hundreds of people trapped in it. At times the movie feels like a horror movie, with quick shots of random bodies, both burned and bloated. There is a definite non stop intensity that drives the film and does ever let up.
In the vein of traditional disaster films (The Towering Inferno, Meteor and the original Poseidon) the cast has some name actors and some new faces. Kurt Russell stars in the film as an ex-Firefighter/ex- New York Mayor who has the charisma to lead the survivors to safety. Josh Lucas (of Glory Road and Stealth) plays the Gambling Loner (and former navy type) that just might be smart enough to find a way out of the rapidly sinking ship. Andre Braugher (star of FX’s new show Thief) plays the very Optimistic Captain of the Poseidon. Kevin Dillon (from HBO’s Entourage) plays The Dude (who runs his mouth too much), that you would kind of like to see meet his demise sooner rather than later. Jacinda Barrett plays The Mother of The Little Kid, specifically the kid that you just know is going to get lost, trapped or kidnapped by aquatic terrorists before the end of the film. There are other interesting characters along the way, such as The Guy who knows his way around the ship, Suicidal Guy, Stowaway Lady and The Really Happy Couple.
They call it The IMAX Experience for a reason, it is an experience. Visually Poseidon is a movie perfectly suited for this format. In some scenes you actually feel like you are moving along with the action. As with other films occasionally some special effects do not hold up when shown up close, specifically some of the CG fire and explosions. Another setback to the extremely large format is that sometimes we see more of the actors than we need to. I think I can speak on behalf of most of the audience when I say that Kurt Russell’s nostrils are a place only his Doctor should see. In some scenes you really feel like part of the action (which is good) and in others you feel crowded (not so good).
I can say this with some certainty; Poseidon will not make you seasick. The movie is rated PG-13, probably due to the abundance of floating bodies, passengers falling to their deaths and the occasional impalement. The cast seemed to take quite a beating during the filming of the movie and it shows, there are many moments where you are thinking, OUCH! All in all for adrenaline junkies, fans of disaster films and probably fans of horror films, Poseidon just might be the ticket.
