By April MacIntyre Dec 15, 2007, 21:28 GMT
If you fondly remember producer Irwin Allen’s flair for dramatizing all sorts of climactic and natural catastrophes, titles that included “The Towering Inferno” “Fire!” and “Flood!”, this latest mini series produced by Justin Bodle will entertain you despite the hugely improbable scenarios the actors find themselves trapped in.
01/12/2007 - Robert Carlyle - © Photorazzi
In a nod to Jerry Bruckheimer’s style of whip pans, colorized frames and overall shaky hand held camera work, with a touch of producer Howard Gordon (of “24” fame) time and date graphics keeping you informed on exactly when the drama is going down, “Flood,” is a condensed thrill ride as a Hurricane Katrina-like catastrophe engulfs an unprepared London.
The premise involves three experts - a top marine engineer, his ex-wife and his father – in a race against time to save a city from destruction.
Themes of global warming, cause and effect rising sea levels, intensifying storms and other real-life weather issues making headlines on a daily basis were the added inspiration for this drama based on the eponymous best-selling novel by author Richard Doyle, the grand-nephew of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. A freak storm surge up caused by an enormous cell over the North sea travels like the wind up the Thames, swamping the river’s locks after it obliterates the Northeastern Scottish coast.
A forgotten professor named Leonard Morrison played by Tom Courtenay has spent his life predicting this very scenario for years, but nobody has listened.
Mr. Morrison’s marine engineer son played by Robert Carlyle is bitter and angry at his dad for choosing science over family.
Deputy prime minister is played by David Suchet and his eyebrows, and London’s head of emergency operations Patricia Nash is played in a typical British understated way by Joanne Whalley.
Carlyle is also working out his estrangement with his ex Canadian wife, an engineer who also happens to run the Thames flood gates.
In “Independence Day” tinged homage, father, son and ex wife are all forced to resolve their personal relationship issues and work together to save London.
A good cast is unfortunately poorly served by several problems. The camera work was way too herky jerky for me, the score was overwraught and certain scenes with actor Robert Carlyle defied any normal parameter of reality suspension.
His underwater heroics would suggest he was a trained Navy seal who also possessed superhuman powers, as he dives repeatedly holding his breath in ostensibly frigid sea and river currents ripping and whirling while surging waters churn violently, yet he is able to ferret out a really well-hidden encapsulated life raft.
He pops up, secures the raft and seems no worse for the wear. At least the makeup department could have attempted to make his lips a bit blue.
“Flood,” will be shown in its United States debut on the ION network on Sunday night, and it carries on in Irwin Allen’s tried and true melodramatic pacing in many ways. But the writing is weak; the usage of effects is too heavy.
Production notes include that 30 tons of water, 27 sets with water and four large water tanks were used, all combined with CG special effects.
If you like "what if" dramatic disaster movies, and you can suspend any sense of disbelief, you will probably get a kick out of seeing Big Ben and the London Underground engulfed by the Thames.
Not bad, not great either.
"Flood", a four-hour television event debuts during the RHI Movie Weekend on the ION Television Network Sunday, December 16 (7/6c).
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