Its age does not protect it from critical analysis. Is it possible to enjoy a film and still find parts of it problematic? We could argue that this film is a product of a different era.
Yet, she plays a pivotal role in the film’s climax and then pays an extraordinary price for her efforts. The sole older woman, Belle Rosen, constantly describes herself as an overweight burden. In fact, the female characters are never onscreen without a male chaperone. They must be coaxed forward by their male companions. All the women are depicted as nervy individuals who respond to setbacks with hysterics. What also dates The Poseidon Adventure is its problematic representations of female characters. This quickly conjures the sense that the story takes place after a terrible event. The costumes and the sets get grubbier as the film progresses. It is the set design, the costumes and the hairstyles that date The Poseidon Adventure more than the special effects.
As a result, the final sacrifices required at the story’s climax are quite affecting. Instead, it focuses on the characters’ reactions without showing the audience much of what they are seeing. For the most part, the film does not linger over the manner of death. But, those who choose to leave have a chance to live. Those who stay behind face certain death by drowning. The ship’s officers want to wait for the rescue.
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A series of mistakes has transformed a natural event into a terrifying scenario.Ī group led by Reverend Scott decide to climb up towards the engine room. People, chairs and pianos tumble across the screen. The tsunami hits the ship which then capsizes. As the passengers ring in the New Year unaware, other bells start to wail. The decision won’t end well for anyone on the Poseidon.Īs the passengers and the officers celebrate New Year’s Eve, an earthquake triggers a tsunami. However, he ignores his better judgement and gives the order to continue at high speed. The captain (a brief cameo by Leslie Nielsen) knows the ship needs more ballast. The Poseidon’s new owners demand the ship reaches its destination as quickly as possible unmoved by the possibility that the passengers could be endangered. Of course, one foreshadowing is never enough. Finally, there’s businessman Martin, singer Nonnie and waiter Acres. Robin, a small boy obsessed with the workings of the ship, is travelling with his older sister Susan. Manny and Belle Rosen are an older couple travelling to Israel to meet their grandson for the first time. They are loud individuals and their interactions are played for comedic effect.
Then there’s New York detective Rogo (Ernest Borgnine) and his wife Linda on their first holiday since their marriage. He’s a renegade who argues with the ship’s chaplain about the power of prayer. There’s Reverend Scott (Gene Hackman) who is being sent to Africa as punishment for challenging the Church’s processes. The main characters are introduced in quick succession. Like the police officer on the day before their retirement, this is one of the first hints of oncoming problems. The ship is sailing from New York to Athens where it will be decommissioned. The plot focuses on the ocean liner Poseidon. So, have the last 45 years been kind to The Poseidon Adventure? In many ways, The Poseidon Adventure is Titanic without the romance and the subsequent debacle about who could have fitted on the door. However, the film’s characters must climb through the decks of a capsized ship to escape. The title suggests an exciting series of events. Released in 1972, The Poseidon Adventure was adapted from a novel by Paul Gallico. Instead, these were all-star distractions, some of which became cult classics. The first part of the 1970s saw a string of big-budget disaster films released by Hollywood studios including Airport, Earthquake, The Towering Inferno and The Poseidon Adventure.
There has to be a dramatic sacrifice for the greater good.Īfter all, not everyone can make it out of a disaster film alive. The cast must overcome obstacles to survive. The disaster can be either natural, man-made or a combination of the two. The story will sketch the cast of disparate characters before anything dramatic happens. Watch enough disaster films and it becomes easy enough to spot the rules.
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