Poseidon

Suspend your belief in high-strung heroics, forget that characters have back stories and do not, for one second, think that "Poseidon" is any more than a meager, yet entertaining computerized action spectacle. If you can do that, you'll enjoy the film. No matter how ridiculous the situations our characters find themselves in, the fact that you know at least one of them will survive is reason enough to keep watching. And, of course, to see how many shapes the capsized cruise ship will bend into. Director Wolfgang Peterson keeps us fully entertained for an entire 90 minutes. The action is engaging, and despite the flat characterization, we're rooting for somebody to reach the surface. And it isn't because we feel attached to anybody in particular, but because we want to reach the end of the maze too, like a mouse smelling cheese at the finish line. Regardless of whether or not our heroes are doing the impossible, it's still neat to see them go through the countless corridors and rooms of an upside-down ocean liner. For anybody who has taken a cruise, it's a completely new and slightly unnerving experience. A 15-story rouge wave capsizes the cruise liner Poseidon, flipping it over, leaving those who survive standing on the ceiling looking down at the floor. All the rooms, the ballroom, club, dining room, crew quarters, are all virtually destroyed, and everything is broken. Not to mention half of the ship is underwater. Despite calm assurance from the captain (Andre Braugher) that the ship will withstand the force of being underwater and upside down, one group decides to take their survival into their own hands. So we join Kurt Russell, Emmy Rossum, Josh Lucas and Richard Dreyfuss among others in their escape up the bottom half of the ship. Their goal: reach the propellers, the only exit to the outside. Explosions, drowning and malfunctions aplenty, a surprising six out of the 10 original crusaders make it through. Some must die, but it's nice to see a film that doesn't kill off all but one or two people.

The special effects are very good for those of us who aren't too picky. From a non-techie standpoint, the giant wave which drives the plot is every bit as good as "Titanic" snapping in two. While the magnitude of explosions does get tedious at times, they're easy to look past. Peterson gives us constant stimulation, a treat for those of us with low attention spans. And the passable effects are complemented well with the set design. Having been on several cruises, the tables, decor and random objects strewn throughout the ship's bowels look accurate and help bring out the fact that we're on a veritable floating city. All the little doors, compartments and rooms, while true to the location, also enhance the suspense. We're every bit as claustrophobic as the cast.

I have to admit, I haven't seen the original film "The Poseidon Adventure," but from what I've read, and what I've just watched, I'm inspired to give it a rent. How often do we get to venture through the depths of an overturned cruise ship?