Member review

I didn’t expect much from “Deepwater Horizon.” This 2016 disaster movie based upon the catastrophic destruction of a BP oil rig (that only happened 6 years before the film was released), starring “Marky Mark” Wahlberg and helmed by the director of “Battleship”, sounded like a recipe for disaster. It looked like a shameful attempt by Hollywood to create a glamorized depiction of an event that killed 11 men and caused irreversible damage to the environment, so I, like many people, didn’t see it.

However, after watching a documentary about the real life events that inspired the film (“After the Spill”) I decided to seek out “Deepwater Horizon” and honestly, I’m glad I did.

“Deepwater Horizon” is a riveting film, packed with realistic performances and overwhelming action that, despite its humongous explosions and stupendous stunts, never forgets the human cost and tragedy of the event. This film tells a simple yet poignant story that a company should never value profit over their worker’s safety, which is sadly very relevant in the modern world. Although the first act takes it’s time setting up the characters and there are a few overly Hollywood-y moments, I have to commend the filmmakers for crafting such a taut and well-constructed disaster thriller that also has deep emotional scenes and dramatic weight within it.

The action in “Deepwater Horizon” is astonishing, it’s relentless and bombastic but never entertaining. Every time a worker got hurled across a room or got crushed by a piece of debris I winced; director Peter Berg masterfully balanced the tumultuous decimation of the rig with the real human cost of the event. Even though there are a few obviously computer-generated explosions, the sequences are all hard-hitting and harrowing

The cast in “Deepwater Horizon” are great, they all do a wonderful job of making their characters feel like real people; Mark Wahlberg is charming, Kurt Russel is compelling and John Malkovich is as hammy and over-the-top as you’d expect.

The script brilliantly establishes the character’s psyche and their rapport with their co-workers, which makes the banter between them feel more natural and authentic, thus causing the inevitable chaos on the rig to pack a more powerful punch.

I was impressed how profound the final few scenes of “Deepwater Horizon” were, the film’s portrayal of how psychological trauma can affect a person and the way that society jumps to conclusions after a tragic event is accurate and disturbing. It’s definitely not a masterpiece in story terms, but it’s worth noting that the filmmakers behind “Deepwater Horizon” tackled the plot in a mature and respectful way.

I didn’t have many criticisms with “Deepwater Horizon”, but there were a couple of minor nit-picks that I had with the film. Firstly, there are a few moments (mainly during the first act and at the end of the action portion of the movie) that were overly cheesy and Hollywood-y. Whilst a few of the inspirational speeches and intimate character moments landed, there are a couple of scenes that felt cheesy and overly dramatic (mainly the moments featuring the protagonist and his family.)

Lastly, although it did a decent job of setting up the characters and building tension for the second half of the movie, the first act did drag on too long. We spend far too much time watching characters talk about how things might go wrong, when we (the audience) know that everything’s going to go wrong. Whilst this added a sense of dread to “Deepwater Horizon”, as we wait with baited breath for everything to fall apart, I think some of the longer dialogue scenes and drawn-out CGI shots of the oil pipe could have been trimmed down.

In summary, I would recommend checking out “Deepwater Horizon.” It may have tanked at the box office, but thanks to its nerve-racking and relentless action, engaging performances and moving finale, “Deepwater Horizon” is worth a watch.