black sea
2015 review number 46:
Black Sea: (Drama/Action): 66 out of 100: A submarine movie can often produce tension as a result of the claustrophobic confines of the setting. One senses that there could be danger lurking around the corner at any moment, either inside or outside the submarine. Although there is some tension generated, it's not the best film of its genre but neither is it the worst.
Jude Law plays Captain Robinson who has recently been let go by his employers. One day he comes across a shady backer who proposes that he search the depths of the Black Sea for a sunken submarine rumoured to be loaded with treasure. He pulls together a misfit crew to accompany him on his search where they must outsmart the enemy and avoid conflict with each other to be able to succeed.
The plot does take a while for the tense drama and action to take place. The first 45 minutes deals with the assembly of the crew. This is standard fare where nothing overly interesting occurs. It's not until the submarine scenes where the viewer becomes more interested. You do have to put up with some cardboard characters though. Although well-acted, one can't escape the fact that many of these characters are cliched.
Law is menacing in his role as the rogue captain. He commands respect and shows that he has developed into a very good character actor. The other actors form an ensemble which help propel the story and generate the tension, even if some aspects of the plot are far-fetched. You do have to suspend disbelief for some scenes, especially the ones where certain characters cheat death.
There are some scenes which have the shaky camera to annoy those viewers who dislike this technique. These scenes are acceptable for the claustrophobic submarine but unnecessary for the recruitment scenes and general conversations before the mission. The scenes inside the submarine are well-filmed with exemplary cinematography and editing.
"Black Sea" is not in the same league as "Das Boot" which probably leads the fleet of submarine drama/thrillers. However, it's still an acceptable piece of entertainment which is definitely not a time-waster. It just could have been better than it actually was.
Starring Jude Law, Scoot McNairy and Ben Mendelsohn
(114 minutes)
Parental advice: Coarse language and violence
Additional scene during or after credits: No
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwGclAAIpx4 (Movie trailer)
(Reviewed on Tuesday 24th March, 2015)
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