Magnificent Maritime Movies
The finest films set in or under the ocean... except for Titanic.
Master And Commander: Far Side of the World
Starring Russell Crowe, Paul Bettany. Directed by Peter Weir (2003)
A seafaring movie for the purist (and for anybody who fancies Napoleonic n aval battle scenes), this modern epic has Russell Crowe and Paul Bettany as a British ship's captain and doctor in a round-the-world chase/fight against a French privateer. The battle sequences are worth every penny of the movie's massive $150-million budget, and the episodes of life at sea will make you wish you were (and weren't) a sailor yourself.
The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
Starring Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Willem Dafoe, Cate Blanchett, Jeff Goldblum. Directed by Wes Anderson (2004)
If you liked director Wes Anderson's other stuff (Rushmore, The Darjeeling Limited, The Royal Tenenbaums), then you'll love this one. If you hated those other flicks, then don't bother, because this is Anderson at his weirdest/quirkiest. Bill Murray is a Cousteau-esque marine biologist who – together with his long-lost son (Owen Wilson), his estranged wife (Angelica Houston), a journalist (Cate Blanchett) and his faithful sidekick (Willem Dafoe) – sets out to find and kill the mythical shark that killed his partner. If the premise isn't weird enough, try this: the soundtrack is classic David Bowie songs, sung in Portuguese, played on an acoustic guitar by one of Captain Zissou's crew.
Das Boot
Starring Herbert Gronemeyer, Jurgen Prochnow. Directed by Wolfgang Petersen (1985)
Don't let your distaste for subtitles sink your chances of watching this all-time classic. It (and we're picking our words carefully here) blows Hollywood films like Crimson Tide and The Hunt For Red October out of the water. It's a German film that follows a submarine (that's the "das Boot" of the title) and its crew on a World War II mission – and it's one of the most tense, most action-packed, and most powerfully anti-war war movies you'll ever have the pleasure of seeing. If you can't track down the original, try the Director's Cut.
Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl
Starring Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush, Keira Knightley, Orlando Bloom.
Director Gore Verbinski (2003)
Okay, so we're talking about the swashbuckling, yo-ho-ho-ing first movie here, not the overblown (though still lank entertaining) second and third movies. You know the deal, right? Pirate's curse, zombies, corsets, Captain Jack Sparrow, crazy action, eye-popping special effects... If you've watched it already, then give it another go. If you haven't, then what be ye waitin' for? Arrrr!
Poseidon
Starring Josh Lucas, Richard Dreyfuss, Kurt Russell. Directed by Wolfgang
Petersen (2006)
Alright, so it's not as great as The Poseidon Adventure (the ace 1970s disaster epic upon which this modern-day remake is based)... but it's still pretty good. The stunts are excellent, the effects are effective, and the tension is tense. If you find yourself hoping that the annoying little kid meets a spectacular watery demise, then don't worry. We reckon that's exactly the reaction the producers were aiming for.
K-19: The Widowmaker
Starring Harrison Ford , Liam Neeson, Peter Sarsgaard. Directed by Kathryn Bigelow (2003)
An independent film, sponsored by National Geographic, telling the true story of the first Soviet nuclear submarine, which came thisclose to blowing up in the middle of the ocean. Sounds like an interesting DStv documentary, but only a mildly entertaining made-for-TV movie, right? Sadly, that's what many moviegoers thought (the movie tanked at the box office)... but what they didn't know – and what we're here to tell you – is that it's actually a pretty decent film, starring Harrison Ford and Liam Neeson, and directed by the director of Point Break and The Hurt Locker.
Below
Starring Bruce Greenwood, Scott Foley. Directed by David Twohy (2002)
A horror film set on a World War 2 submarine. Sure, it sounds a bit derivative (it's like The Shining or Even Horizon under water)... but it's actually not that bad. The plot twists are pretty good, the acting's OK, and the effects do the business.
AND IF NONE OF THOSE ARE AVAILABLE, GIVE THESE A TRY...
Cutthroat Island
Arrr! Pirates! This flick's gone down as one of the most expensive box office turkeys in history (it pretty much shut down Carolco Pictures)... but between Matthew Modine's swashbuckling acting, Geena Davis's heaving breasts and director Renny Harlin's desperate attempt to blow up every single ship on screen, it's just about worth watching.
U-571
More World War 2 submarine greatness, this time starring Matthew McConaughey, Bill Paxton, Harvey Keitel and (bizarrely) Jon Bon Jovi as a group of American sailors who end up on a German U-boat in enemy waters with weird code books and... psht. We're not going to give the story away. We'll leave that to the trailer:
Under Siege
Now before you dismiss this as a stupid Steven Seagal action flick, stop for a moment, and see it the way we see it: as a stupid Steven Seagal action flick with Tommy Lee Jones as the villain. See? Much better.
To Have And Have Not
Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall star in a Howard Hawks movie of an Ernest Hemingway novel, which Wikipedia describes as "a thriller romance war adventure film". The effects are very ropey, and the acting's not nearly as "classic" as you'd like it to be... but it's a great story nonetheless.
Dead Calm
Pop quiz: If you were on a yacht in the middle of the ocean with a young Nicole Kidman, and Billy Zane came rowing his boat towards you, what would you do? If you answered "Sink Billy's boat", then we're with you.
White Squall
Dead Poets Society on a yacht.
The Abyss
We're sneaking this one in because we love it so much. It's a James Cameron classic, with all the special effects, all the action, and all the human interest you'd expect. Brilliant stuff.
| More like this |
|
CENTER
