I remember being pretty pissed, like everyone else, at the Deepwater Horizon incident in 2010. All those poor animals covered in oil, the video of the oil endlessly spilling into the ocean dominated the news and invoked the anger of many during that seemingly endless summer. What I forgot (and most people did too) is that 11 people died aboard that oil rig. The movie Deepwater Horizon looks to give a voice to those forgotten men who worked and lived as best they could for their families.
Mike Williams (Mark Wahlberg) is an engineering technician for Transocean, which runs the Deepwater Horizon which BP uses to extract oil/gas and make a profit. He’s returning to the rig along with rig (boat) operator Andrea (Gina Rodriguez). Things are not hunky dory on the rig though; BP executive Vidrine (John Malkovich) has been cutting corners on testing the fail safe operations to save money (the well is 43 days behind schedule), much to the anger of Mr. Jimmy (Kurt Russell) the captain of the rig. As we know, this anger was 100% justified, with catastrophic effects.
It’s a little puzzling why there haven’t been more movies involving oil rigs: like a submarine, its a perfect location for an action thriller. Director Peter Berg goes to great lengths to show how isolated the rig is, 45 minutes offshore, standing alone amidst and endless sea. We walk with Mark Wahlberg around the facility, which showcases how many nooks and crannies you can put people, but also show’s how confined this space is. I mean, what’s better than a claustrophobic isolated space to stage a real life thriller? Berg does a pretty good job getting the audience used to the jargon and vernacular of the various groups of workers, and builds the tension between the different groups while showing the levels of failure that will cause the explosions to happen. The dread builds and builds until the fireworks begin and escalate VERY quickly. The work Berg put into creating a real set means the audience feels those explosions, and helps establish how heroic or cowardly these workers can be when given an occasion to rise to. And there’s just enough tasks to keep them on the rig and keep the tension high. My jaw was wide open as each new planned explosion was showcased majestically by the creative team.
Movies like Deepwater Horizon work best when they quickly put you into the action. So yes, while its probably humanizing to watch Mike Williams cutely interact with his wife (Kate Hudson) and daughter (Stella Allen), those scenes don’t need to be in the movie. That extra 20 minutes could be spent with Mike on the rig, walking through the various parts of the rig we need to know so we don’t know what parts are importing when stuff starts going down. Post explosion, Berg elects to shoot using lots of shaky cam, which is a mixed bag. This style made me feel like I was helpless on that rig like the workers, as well as disoriented when stuff starts breaking. However, the camera does too good a job, as I knew where NOTHING was on that rig when it would have helped the stakes for the characters.
This is a Mark Wahlberg: Hero Extraordinaire movie. The man is great at looking the part, playing Mike as the everyman who does his job and rises to the occasion when the situation gets more dire. Kurt Russell and John Malkovich are good in their few scenes together. Watching the political battle between those hard asses was essential to set up the terror that would occur later. Of the many working grunts on the rig, Ethan Suplee and Gina Rodriguez earn your rooting interest being likable people who act when others freeze up. Dylan O’Brien probably comes off the best, playing the lowest level blue collar guy who plays Robin to Wahlberg’s Batman at times.
I understand that Deepwater Horizon exists because of the real life event it caused. However, this relationship is a mixed blessing. The tragedy is clearly used to help sell tickets because of name recognition; however, people may be infuriated because of the minimal political criticism of BP and the other power hungry executive men. It’s too bad, because of this movie existed fictionally only, Deepwater Horizon would have been riveting from start to finish as a simple tale of survival. Turns out Mark Wahlberg doesn’t need Optimus Prime to get him out of this one.