It could have worked, but it didn't...
 Sep 2nd, 2004
Advantages:
You will release a small amout of adenalin . . .
Disadvantages:
The space in this rectangle is too short to tell . . .
Recommendable:
No
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  lazuli77
About me:
3 years later, I'm back. Looking forward to explore the site again.
Member since:20.08.2004
Reviews:46
Members who trust:51
Review rated by 32 Ciao members on average: very helpful 
The movie opens with a party scene on board of an ocean liner sailing over the Bering Sea. It is the year of 1962. On board of the “Antonia Graza”, fine European people dance slowly, to the sound of Francesca’s (Francesca Rettondini) nostalgic voice. It is chic, slow paced party. Katie Hargrove is bored, sitting on a corner with a little game until the captain takes her to dance. The girl travels alone and is on her way to America (where else) to meet her parents.
All is well. The movie would appear to be all so innocent if it wasn’t for that false sense of security that lingers in the air. Things have to go wrong and they will! What happens next is arguably one of the goriest sequences of scenes in the history of cinema. It led me to think that the movie, with the silly cover of a boat shaped skull saying “it will scary you shipless”, would actually be bloodcurdling – but no! Everything from there onwards is clichéd and predictable. When a boat rescuing team are joined together at a bar, after their last job on sea, they are happily discussing their holidays and what they are going to do with their time off. Of course, someone had to come along and spoil their plans. Jack Ferriman (Desmond Harrington) approaches the team and explains he has found a boat that needs salvaging.
Although reluctant at first, the team slowly change their minds as they see the pictures of the liner, and consider the financial gains that might arise from taking this “one more” job. After the argument is settled, over whether to pass on the mission or not, and what commission Mr. Ferriman should be getting, everybody agrees to postpone their holidays and look for the fatidic boat. Jack insists in following the experts in exchange for a lower commission. (Pause the movie for a moment at this point and make the most out of it by placing bets on who’s going to die, and in what order…)
Captain Sean Murphy (Gabriel Byrne – what’s he doing here?!) and his crew of 5, of which unsurprisingly only one could be a woman, Maureen Epps, embark on their doomed treasure hunt. Jack goes with them, as agreed. As some of the crew members still question whether they should have gone home, their small boat is in collision rota with the lost “Antonia Graza”.
Maureen Epps (Julliana Margulies) seems to be the leader, and the director (Steve Beck) gives her deliberate exposure in order to make us understand that we should “forget the others, they don’t matter, care for Maureen…Maureen”. Of course, she is the one who has clear access to the liner’s past, thanks to the convenient relationship she establishes with Katie, a lost soul in the boat. In the meantime, as Maureen learns her history, the other characters seem to be lost in a house of horrors in some sort of collective psychosis, always with the gold they found aboard as their main priority…the entertaining bit is confined to jumping on your seat now and again and laughing at yourself for knowing what was going to happen and still got scared. Attention, the music can get scarier than the movie itself.
In my humble opinion, this is a movie with a good concept that was not developed well enough. The script is weak, the dialogues are poor and the twist fails to impress. One is left with the impression that we’ve seen this movie before. The actors failed to convince, yet, with a script like I suppose they couldn’t have done much better. It is not the worst movie in the world. It is “watchable” (new word there!) but it is nothing you want to be spending your money on.
The extra features on the DVD include behind the scenes and visual effects features, if the movie engaged you enough to want to find out more about it… The two stars are for the special effects in the beggining.
Don’t buy it. Watch it on TV if you must.
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by (6%):
10.12.2004 01:18
I have a short attention span when it comes to films so won't bother making the effort to watch this one.
16.11.2004 09:23
Think i'll give this one a miss x
06.10.2004 00:37
I have to agree - I thought it was mediocre. Anne x