Poseidon [HD DVD]

The movie itself is pretty much an empty vessel, though it is certainly a product of its time. Trivial concerns such as story and character are jettisoned in favor of elaborate and expensive sets and CGI special effects. Like so many CGI blockbusters, human interaction is merely a bothersome detail; the real focus being on the violent extermination of masses of nameless, faceless victims. And once again, Hollywood has mistaken technological gimmickry for storytelling skill. When the film does try to escape from tired predictability it bites off for more than it can chew.

The capsizing sequence was stunning, but so many areas of the ship were highlighted in such a short time that I never really felt I was part of the action. We witness the galley bursting into flames and everybody being burnt to a crispy critter. Elevators come crashing down, people are falling and dying all over the place, dead bodies float all throughout the ship and outside the ship, and it's one big mess. There was no Christmas tree!?! The Christmas tree played a pivotal role in the original film ... from passengers falling into it during the capsizing ... to it unexpectedly crashing down ... to the survivors climbing it (and Mrs. Rosen getting stuck in the spokes) ... to it falling back into the flooding Dining Room when panic ensues! Why leave it out entirely when there are so many cinematic possibilities? Instead the characters in the new film "sneak out" of the Ballroom using some stacked chairs. There is absolutely no plea for others to join them even though they know that anyone left behind may die. I suppose it says something about today's society ... "I'm getting out of here -- to hell with everyone else!" But these guys are supposed to be the heroes in the film? The film has no sense of humanity, let alone a sense of humor about the absurdity of the entire premise.

I suppose that the filmmakers wanted this to be like the remake of KING KONG, an eye-popping, special effects reinvention of a well-worn story. But, instead, POSEIDON ends up being like the woefully unnecessary remake of PSYCHO: there was no need, demand or purpose for this film to exist and the filmmakers reveal they have no apparent clue as to why the original is loved in the first place. That's what happens when you set sail without a compass; you just get lost at sea.

Director Wolfgang Peterson seems to be in such a terrible hurry with Poseidon - everything moves at such a fast pace that the characters - and the viewers - rarely have enough time to stop for a mouthful of air. And while the movie campy fun and as suspenseful as the original 1972 Poseidon Adventure, the film is certainly short and most definitely to the point. However, you really have to suspend disbelief at much of what you see transpiring.

In this remake you see lots of extras die as their world is turned upside down one New Year's Eve, with little warning once the "rogue wave" is sighted and heads towards the doomed luxury liner. Overcome by flooding, shorting electricity and baked by flash fires, the expendable masses yield with barely more than a shocked glimpse, hands clapped over mouths and last-minute hugs with total strangers.

As the Disco and swimming pool, galleys and grand suites and of course the grand ballroom go belly-up, there's the bunch of heroic characters that defy the Captain and decide to head-onward and upward through the waterlogged, overturned ship in feats that call for a deep-sea suspension of disbelief, but no matter, because the delectable Josh Lucas leads this eclectic, mismatched gang, and wouldn't you follow him!

Alas, there's no Shelly Winters-like character in this version. The protagonists all come across, as rather nameless and faceless, blandness is the order of the day here. Kurt Russell plays a devoted father, and the ex-Mayor of New York Richard Dreyfuss is lamenting being dumped by his boyfriend, Josh Lucas is a gambler and I think a fireman - which is why of course he knows the workings of the luxury liner backwards.

Emmy Rossum, Jacinda Barrett, Mia Maestro, Mike Vogel and Kevin Dillon round at the crowd. And they all have remarkably strong lung capacity, considering how long they have to spend underwater! But it doesn't really matter who's who, or who will sink or swim because once the ship flips, character development isn't high on the list of this movie's agenda.

Obviously the special effects are what it's all about and there's tons and tons of rushing water, exploding electrical circuits, people caught in air-conditioning shafts and being burnt to death by sudden fires - it's all big and loud and contains some expert stunt work and superb integration of digital technology.

The direction is mostly crisp and although it all gets a bit repetitious towards the end - it also becomes hard to figure out what is going on - the film mostly works because it steps up its dramatic speed early on, and its pacing never falters. Mike Leonard August 06.

"Poseidon" is a truly exhilirating and highly intense remake of the 1972 original "The Poseidon Adventure". Where the majority of modern updates fail on matching their source material's quality, this very good action/thriller does the unlikely and actually surpasses the first movie. In directing "Poseidon" Wolfgang Petersen has accomplished one of the most exciting collective projects of the past year, one that can be forgiven its few flaws simply because of the overwhelmingly good majority of it. Not wasting any time in getting down to business, Petersen keeps "Poseidon" constantly fast-paced and hyperactive from the very beginning right up until the closing credits.

The core plot is simplistic and straightforward; Almost immediately after the strike of the new year, a massive wave collides with luxury ocean liner 'Poseidon', ultimately causing the vessel to capsize. So, as the ship continues to slowly sink into the water, and fill with it, a group of passengers band together to find a way to the top, well, bottom, of the ship before they meet a watery grave. Said surviving passengers are Robert Ramsey (Kurt Russell), his daughter Jennifer (Emmy Rossum), her boyfriend Christian (Mike Vogel), confident bachelor Dylan James (Josh Lucas), depressed gay man Richard Nelson (Richard Dreyfuss), kitchen worker Marco Valentin (Freddy Rodriguez), self-congratulatory gambler Lucky Larry (Kevin Dillon), stowaway Elena Gonzalez (Mia Maestro), single mother Maggie (Jacinda Barrett), and her son Conor (Jimmy Bennett). As they make their way through the bowels of the ship, they must face the danger of drowning, electrocution, and numerous other possibilities.

The lead performances are all good. That is, even if the actors/actresses aren't given characters with any notable depth. Playing group leaders Robert Ramsey and Dylan James respectively, Kurt Russell and Josh Lucas clash repeatedly on-screen as they try to figure out what to do in order to survive. The two play their parts excellently, even though they and the rest of the cast are predominately only called upon to act scared throughout. Another relationship fantastically captured because of the acting performances is that of Jessica Ramsey and boyfriend Christian, played by Emmy Rossum and Mike Vogel. The two share an on-screen chemistry that is captivating and interesting to watch, especially in the face of almost certain death. Of the other lead performers Richard Dreyfuss and Jimmy Bennett are most outstanding, the latter especially given his youth, conveying raw emotion and feeling beyond his child actor peers.

If there is to be a slight criticism of "Poseidon" as a whole picture it is in how repetetive the movie eventually because. Not once is the movie a bore, however, but some more daring plot developments and less predictability would have been welcome. Granted, the movie has played out to fit the twelve-and-under demographic, but more innovation would have been welcome. Where screenwriter Mark Protosevich excels is in getting straight to the point early on, not sidetracking himself with unimportant or irrelevant subplotting. If this subtracts from the depth and humanity of the lead characters, it is but a miniscule problem that can be easily forgave. All in all, "Poseidon" is a tight and cleverly scripted movie.

Director Wolfgang Petersen does what can almost be described as a flawless job. With "Poseidon", the veteran director has accomplished a motion picture of sheer power and tensity, exciting in every scene. Getting the best out of his actors and finding a perfect partner in cinematographer John Seale, bringing a shine and smoothness to the picture that massively compliments the immaculate special effects. That Petersen makes sure to keep things going without pausing for observation or monologue speeches only helps the end project, which rockets along so fast that the viewer barely has time to analyse and criticise what they've last seen, being that another spectacular set-piece is never far away.

"Poseidon" deserves to be watched and posesses entertainment value unlike most other modern day action pictures. If you're searching for a picture with any depth or visible character development, look elsewhere. As a pure action flick that keeps the audience gripped from beginning to end, "Poseidon" succeeds.