Deepwater Horizon pays a respectable and riveting tribute to the worst oil disaster in US History

Movie Title:  Deepwater Horizon

Grade:  A-

Rating:  PG-13, 99 minutes

In a Nutshell:  If you don’t remember the real events from when this true story happened, you learn that the oil rig’s blowout lasted 87 days, making it the worst oil disaster in U.S. history.  Director Peter Berg is great at creating tension and action sequences that make it hard to look away.  This is the second time he and Mark Wahlberg have filmed a true story action flick (Lone Survivor), and they have another one hitting the big screen soon (Patriot Day).

It’s truly stunning how they filmed this movie, because it looks and feels so real.  It took over $100 million to recreate this man-made disaster that shook the country in 2010.

Uplifting theme: 

• Family is everything.
• Hope, greed, sacrifice for others, friendship, grit and determination.

Things I liked:

• Impressive machinery and rough working conditions will make you respect the men and women who work on oil rigs.  The film does a good job paying tribute to the people in this tough industry.
• There is some humor in the beginning that allows you to sense the friendship and comradery among the team workers and allows you to begin to care about them.
• John Malkovich gives a great performance with an interesting Southern drawl.
• I’m always so impressed with people who are calm in an emergency.
• It’s great to see Kurt Russell in movies.  The first time I saw him in a movie I was a little girl and thought he was so handsome.  It was nice to see him and Kate Hudson together in the same movie.  Don’t we all miss Goldie Hawn?
• I love Gina Rodriguez from the hit TV show “Jane the Virgin” for which she won a Golden Globe Award for Best Actress. It’s great to see she got another gig in a movie.  She learned to rap for her role in the indie film Filly Brown in 2012.
• The touching reunion scene at the end of the movie got the audience crying all around me.
• You get to see pictures of the real people who died in this disaster.   
• Mark Wahlberg is the perfect actor to play this rough and tumble oil rig worker with a heart.  
• There is a powerful scene when Kurt Russell and John Malkovich just look at each other, yet volumes are spoken.

Things I didn’t like:

• Sometimes people talk really fast and slurred, making it hard to understand what they say.
• It’s often difficult to see what’s going on, because there is fire, mud, oil, and debris flying everywhere.
• If you want to see this movie, do it at the theater.  Some of the scenes are dark and will look terrible on your computer screen.
• There is a lot of facial hair in this movie!  Why is that such a popular thing right now?  Just a little bit of scruff is sexy, but when you can hide jelly beans in your beard, you know it’s too long.
• The audience won’t always be able to understand the technical jargon.

Interesting lines:

• “Hope ain’t a tactic, Don.” – Mike Williams (Mark Wahlberg)

Funny lines:

• “I don’t know if it’s stupid, but it ain’t smart.” – Caleb Holloway (Dylan O’Brien)

Tips for parents: 

• 2 F-bombs and lots of other profanity.
• Bloody, deep wounds, people in perilous situations, death, destruction.