Sanctum

[superhero]

Just saw a trailer for this tonight on TV, it looks quite tacky, don't know why James Cameron has heavily attached his name to it (or perhaps thats why! haha)

[andrews]

The 3-D action-thriller Sanctum, from executive producer James Cameron, follows a team of underwater cave divers on a treacherous expedition to the largest, most beautiful and least accessible cave system on Earth. When a tropical storm forces them deep into the caverns, they must fight raging water, deadly terrain and creeping panic as they search for an unknown escape route to the sea. Master diver Frank McGuire (Richard Roxburgh) has explored the South Pacific’s Esa-ala Caves for months. But when his exit is cut off in a flash flood, Frank’s team–including 17-year-old son Josh (Rhys Wakefield) and financier Carl Hurley (Ioan Gruffudd)–are forced to radically alter plans. With dwindling supplies, the crew must navigate an underwater labyrinth to make it out. Soon, they are confronted with the unavoidable question: Can they survive, or will they be trapped forever.

Release Date: February 4, 2011 (RealD 3D, IMAX 3D and 2D theaters)
Studio: Universal Pictures
Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama, Thriller
Director: Alister Grierson
Screenwriter: John Garvin, Andrew Wight
Official Website: SanctumMovie.com
Starring: Richard Roxburgh, Rhys Wakefield, Ioan Gruffudd, Alice Parkinson, Dan Wyllie
Running Time: 1 hr. 43 min.


Trailer here: http://wn.com/Sanctum_Movie_%5Bofficial_trailer%5D

[weirdfilms33]

Just saw a trailer for this tonight on TV, it looks quite tacky, don't know why James Cameron has heavily attached his name to it (or perhaps thats why! haha)

Given his love of deep-sea diving, I'm not terribly surprised James Cameron has attached his name to it. Look at The Abyss or Titanic. He actually spent more time with the sunken Titanic than its passengers spent on it before it sunk

[superhero]

I know but this sounded more piranha 3D territory than Avatar territory.... and it's not likely they would release anything big in Feb...

[soonforgotten]

Saw this tonight at WIQ, giving the Priceless Cinema vouchers one last go (under the guise of Crack Swan) and thanks to Preston for that. I was surprised as it was just about sold out. Thankfully there didn't seem to be one person who confusedly tried to find a free seat.

I have to say that I thought this was decent. It wasn't spectacular and insert my usual 3D opinion here, but it was a tense drama in an unusual setting. Some of the acting was a bit spotty and I do wonder why the female characters are so weak, but I did enjoy the overall story and how it was presented. 7.5/10

[manhei]

How are the 3D effects exactly?

[Preston1990]

I saw this today too, and frankly I was disappointed. Visually and even from a 3D point of view I thought it was pretty good, but in other areas it felt seriously lacking. I got very bored with the storyline and felt that it was too high on the dull and repetitive side, with no real surprises along the way. It was one of those predictable films where it was just a matter of sitting it out and waiting for the relief of the thing finally finishing.

The only positive thing I came away with was an even stronger feeling than I already have, that I never ever ever want to try diving, potholing, climbing or any other similar foolhardy life-threatening sport for so called entertainment value.

How are the 3D effects exactly?

Submersive!



6 out of 10 from me for this.

[superhero]

They probably should show this at the BFI Imax

[TheDude]

This film was "inspired by true events"... so when I saw this, I thought what an ordeal to go through. Now I read the actual events weren't quite as dramatic... 14 people were trapped for two days but they all got out alive and well.

I thought it was an interesting father and son storyline, specially when the son has to make that big decision towards the end. But at times it felt like I was watchin an extreme version of Home and Away, every 10 minutes it's: "Are you alright?"... "Yeah, I'm fine..." Most of the characters turn out to be somewhat unlikeable too, so it's hard to feel for them.

The 3D effects weren't too amazing, though there were one or two scenes where you felt like you were stuck there in that cave with them, so at least can say I remembered during the film that it was supposed to be in 3D.

So a slightly unsettling horror drama, with some gory moments.. 6/10

[superhero]

I thought most reviews had it the other way around, terrible script/storyline, decent effects