Product Description

When a rogue wave capsizes a luxury cruise ship in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, a small group of survivors find themselves unlikely allies in a battle for their lives. As the unstable vessel rapidly floods with water, they face unimaginable odds and life-altering decisions in their desperate fight to the surface.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #12586 in DVD
• Released on: 2006-08-22
• Rating: PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested)
• Aspect ratio: 1.66:1
• Formats: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD-Video, Subtitled, Widescreen, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Subtitled in: English, French, Spanish
• Dubbed in: French, Spanish
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 98 minutes

Amazon.com
The 1972 disaster hit The Poseidon Adventure was ripe for a big-budget CGI remake, and who better to helm it than thriller expert Wolfgang Petersen, director of Das Boot and The Perfect Storm? It hardly matters that a TV movie remake (also based on Paul Gallico's original 1969 source novel) was made less than a year before, because Petersen's version is far more spectacular, with shocking digital effects, massive sets, amazing stunt-work and enough fire and water to fill five movies with challenging worst-case scenarios. Once again, the plot concerns the capsizing (by a massive "rogue wave") of a state-of-the-art luxury liner, and the struggle of a small group of survivors (including Josh Lucas, Kurt Russell, Emmy Rossum, and Richard Dreyfuss) to climb upwards, to the ship's hull, in their treacherous quest for a safe exit. Unfortunately, most of these characters are two-dimensional and under-developed (especially when compared to the 1972 film's all-star cast), and the unimaginative screenplay by Mark Protosevich (reportedly worked on by several uncredited writers) subjects them to a rote series of obstacles that grow increasingly routine and repetitious, not to mention contrived and illogical. Again, it hardly matters, because Petersen's handling of non-stop action is so slick and professional that Poseidon gets by on sheer adrenaline. The capsizing scenes are nothing less than awesome, with some effects so real (and so horrifying) that younger and more sensitive viewers may need to look away. And while it lacks the engaging humanity of the 1972 version, Poseidon is certainly never boring. Faint praise, perhaps, but you'll get your popcorn's worth of mindless entertainment. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews

Nice Effects and great movie!
I just got done watching this movie a couple nights ago. It was a great movie! The visual effects were outstanding and the plot and characters were awesome! It was really fun watching this movie and I highly recommend it!!!

Big Boat Go Flop!
The original Poseidon Adventure was Irwin Allen in his disaster film best...ensemble acting with a tragedy to work through. He worked that formula like no-one else...so when Wolfgang Petersen went to remake it, he did what he should have. He scrapped what Allen was magic at and inserted his own strength in their place. Which meant characters that might not be the most interesting, but working as a team to overcome the odds (think Das Boot).

To that end, his "Poseidon" is a faster paced, tighter and shorter movie than Allen's and moves at such a tear that it's hard to notice when it falters. The cast is helmed by Kurt Russell (playing troubled macho as only he can), Josh Lucas (loner gambler subbing for Gene Hackman's loner priest) and Richard Dreyfuss (gay man just jilted by his ex for a younger man). Along with seven other survivors, this group must battle fire, water and the clock to climb up the ship to safety.

Minus the 3-dimensional characters, Petersen gives us a 3-dimensional ship. The effects are a marvel (the bonus disc shows you just how few CGI effects were used) and the opening wave scene is visceral in its blunt force. The capsizing boat, with the ensuing death and the mayhem, will scare the saltwater out of you. Maybe even more so than some horror movies. Little time is wasted between survival episodes, although the nod to Shelly Winters' swim team dialog from the original is a nice touch. The survivors overcome obstacle after peril and each more tense than the last.

There is, naturally, a happy ending. Just who makes it out and how is the fun of "Poseidon." Once it's over, make sure to watch the DVD extras, with the Crew Diary being interesting and the Special Effects feature fascinating.

Was ok
Can't top the original, they try to improve but loss some of the best original scenes...like Shelley Winters great part almost at the end of the movie.