The original POSEIDON ADVENTURE is campy and at times dated, but it knew how to build tension and make us care about its characters. The big budget remake has stripped everything that made the original work and filled the film with pointless action scene after pointless action scene.
Like all disaster films, the cast is filled with types, but other films at least try to develop the characters slightly. Robert Ramsey (Kurt Russell, ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK) is a firefighter turned mayor of New York, who seems overly obsessed with his daughter Jennifer (Emily Rossum, MYSTIC RIVER) showing too much cleavage. Jennifer has secretly become engaged with Christian (HAVOC), who of course Robert does not like. Richard Nelson (Richard Dreyfuss, JAWS) is a gay man whose lover has recently broken up with him, leaving him very depressed. Dylan Johns (Josh Lucas, THE HULK) is a former Navy officer who has become a professional gambler. He quickly sets his eyes on single mom Maggie James (Jacinda Barrett, LADDER 49), whose young son Conor (Jimmy Bennet, FIREWALL) has a knack for getting himself into trouble. Elena (Mia Maestro, FRIDA) is trying to get to New York to see her sister and has been smuggled onto the boat by waiter Valentin (Freddy Rodriguez, TV’s SIX FEET UNDER). Then there’s Lucky Louie (Kevin Dillon, TV’s ENTOURAGE), a ridiculously over-the-top cliché of the obnoxious drunk sexist pig.
The film takes about 15 minutes to give these characters cursory development then the wave hits. This is really a huge mistake. We aren’t even given time to care about the character before they are put in endless peril. If we cared about them, then maybe we’d feel something when they’re about to die. In this version, instead of dying on the bridge, Capt. Bradford (Andre Braugher, DUETS) stays with the passengers trapped in the ballroom. And if you saw the first film then you know staying is a really bad idea.
One of the great aspects of the original was the personal tension between the characters. The battles between Gene Hackman’s reverend and Ernest Borgnine’s cop drove the tension. In the new film, it’s just one physical obstacle after another. This version also ramps up the drama on the physical obstacles to a ridiculous level. When Josh Lucas dives into the burning water, all suspension of disbelief is ruined. And that’s the whole picture — one absurd trial after another.
Additionally, nothing is surprising, we pretty much can predict when and where each character is going to die or survive. You really think a major motion picture is going to let a little kid drown? The only actor who is given anything interesting to do is Dreyfuss, who gives the film’s only good performance. After making a difficult life or death decision, he takes it upon himself to protect the scared Elena. Yet, the relationship reminds me of the dynamic between Red Buttons and Carol Lynley in the original, which had a sweet charm that is lacking from the relationship between Dreyfuss and Maestro.
The only thing that’s really great in the film is the visual effects. The water effects and the sinking of the ship are magnificent. This is the only part that improves upon the original, which looks really silly in comparison when it comes to the effects. Not even Dreyfuss or the vfx can save this disaster of a movie. By stripping the story of all its real emotional power it creates a boring rollercoaster ride that could only be thrilling if it were watched on an actual sinking ship. With modern visual effects, this could have been a great remake, but I guess the filmmakers put too much of the film’s $140 million budget into those effects, leaving enough cash left over to buy the script on discount at Goodwill.
Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
