The Poseidon Adventure | | Cast : | Gene Hackman, Ernest Borgnine, Shelley Winters | | Director : | Ronald Neame | | Studio : | Twentieth Century Fox | | Format : | Color, Closed-captioned, THX, Widescreen | | Released Date : | December 13, 1972 | | DVD Released Date : | December 17, 2002 | | Language : | French (Dubbed), English (Dubbed), English (Original Language), French (Original Language), English (Subtitled), Spanish (Subtitled) | | Audience Rating : | PG (Parental Guidance Suggested) | | | BUY THIS DVD FROM AMAZON |
Customer Reviews
| Rating |  | | Date | August 08, 2005 | | Summary | The kid ruins another film | Content
 | This film has a kid as one of the main survivor characters and it kills the film. Kids cannot act, and they ruin films such as Shane. Shane was a fine film until the director decided to dominate the film with a kid character. I guess the kid helps to sell the film to a wider audience, but it just kills the film. Adding kids to films may help bring in a quick buck at the time the film is released, but it ruins the film as a "classic". Avoid the kid here and try Towering Inferno which is not as juvenile. Trust me that kids kill films. One of the best fims ever, "The Squeeze" with Lee Van Cleef doesnt have any kids in it. |
| Rating | | | Date | August 06, 2005 | | Summary | This is a really good movie.... | Content
| This is a really good movie that stands the test of time. Made more than 30 yrs. ago, this movie relied on a good plot and good acting to make it's mark. Gene Hackman is great in everything he does. I would pay to watch him direct traffic. However, Shelly Winters and Ernest Borgnine are the standouts here. In my opinion, Winters should have won the Oscar for Best Actress, but Liza Minelli won it. Go figure. Rent this DVD, and then you'll want to buy it. It's that good! |
| Rating | | | Date | July 24, 2005 | | Summary | NOT A SHIPRECK | Content
| Celluloid seventies fun. Sure the dialogue is corny at times, but the movie is filmed with very authentic scenes. I remember seeing this in a theatre when it came out. That big titlewave coming at that ship while the officers looked on was scary. The characters are interesting. Ernest Borgnine(the cop)and Stella Stevens(ex-hooker)are at their best and it played out well. Gene Hackman(preacher)overacted at times but he had some good lines when he expressed suffering, particularly when hanging from that blazing hot metal wheel valve. Carol Lynley(the singer) and Pamela Sue Martin(love starved sister)are more than bit players that add depth while looking good when wet. Shelly Winters(ex-super swimmer)is less than tolerable. The Dvd needs work. The picture is pretty good(THX)but its letterboxed(non anamorphic)so even on a widescreen TV, it's too small. The audio is crap. This movie would be greatly enhanced by superior sound. I gotta wonder what some of these distributors are thinking. Half right is all wrong. Enjoy the film for the 70s blast that it is. P.S. Why is Beyond the Poseidon Adventure not on dvd? |
| Rating | | | Date | June 30, 2005 | | Summary | Original & Likable | Content
| Great acting with likable characters. Especially Hackman, who gives a great performance. You can't beat it for originality, it spawned many wanna-be's.
Some good action scenes, poignant moments, humor, and the upside-down sets are great.
I love the underlying theme, laid out in the sermon: "You can't always depend on others. If you want something, go get it yourself."
The premise that you would climb up to an ENCLOSED steel hull is ridiculous, but other than that, this film is good entertainment. |
| Rating | | | Date | June 17, 2005 | | Summary | Cruising in the 70s | Content
| This classic movie from 1972 features a multi-star cast. It's not as much an adventure as a disaster at sea that kills off almost the entire passenger list. Parts of the movie were filmed on the Queen Mary.
The film looks very dated now, with glowing orange and yellow colors, a mixture of hippy singers and conservative older people. A preacher - Gene Hackman - spends his time telling people that God helps those who help themselves. He discusses this issue with a fellow preacher, one who believes in simply staying put and praying.
Of course this all comes into play in a short time when a killer tsunami sweeps along and overturns the boat in the middle of New Year's Eve festivities. There are a number of key people by this point - a young boy and girl, an older married couple, a middle-age couple of cop and reformed prostitute, plus the female singer and a crew member. The entire passenger list, pretty much, is stranded in the main ballroom area.
The preacher sets into action working to find a way to escape. The purser and most of the passengers decide to just "stay put" and wait for help, even though the boat is now upside down. This greatly upsets the preacher, but him and his 10-member "flock" climb to safety. There's no drawn out wondering if he did the right thing - the moment they get to a higher level, water comes in and drowns everyone else.
From that point forward it's a literal race against time - the water comes up behind them, they climb ahead. Even with so many proofs of why it's critical for them to reach higher ground, his flock constantly complains. They meet other people along the way who are convinced that staying put or going towards the water is a bad idea. It's really amazing how many people are slaughtered in this movie to make the point.
This isn't a great movie for someone afraid of boats - but it does give you a glimpse into what cruise life was before the great building explosion of the 1990s. Back in the early 70s, there were creaky, wooden chairs on deck, wooden platforms, very steep ladders, and a great deal of formality. It was a ship that people took cruises on, vs a floating hotel that happened to be on the water.
I do have an issue with the ending, but I won't give that away. In any case I highly recommend watching this to get a sense of what cruising was like in very recent times.
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