Craig Gillespie directs Chris Pine, Casey Affleck and Holliday Grainger in this 1950s true tale of the coast guard rescuing the crew of a torn in half tanker.
The special effects are obvious but convincing, the derring do familiar and the pace respectful making this is a decent Sunday afternoon movie – comfortable and unchallenging. It has some plus points in casting Chris Pine effectively against type (he essentially plays Michael Shannon well) and just simply including Affleck, who brings his usual understated magic to a bland part. It is the kind of old fashioned movie that does nothing wrong yet struggles to justify its existence in the modern marketplace. Maybe the real heroes it was based on, the budget spent to realise it and the talent involved deserved a better film but you could choose a far worse two hours at the movies at this time of year.
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