Dead Calm [DVD] [1989]

Classic thriller, great cast.

Enjoyable

Great horror thriller set mostly in the Pacific Ocean fine performances from Nicole Kidman, Sam Neill and Billy Zane. Rae & John Ingram rescue a distraught young man Hughie Warriner from a crippled schooner, he claims he's the only survivor the rest of the schooner's crew having died from some mysterious disease. Leaving Rae alone with Hughie John Ingram rows across to examine the stricken boat to discover the mutilated remains of the other crew members, a rather cryptic video recording of the previous events on the schooner (shot by Hughie himself - several attractive "broad minded" girls & a guy called Russell Bellows who sounds a bit of a bully) and also the ship is slowly sinking! Meanwhile Hughie takes possession of the Ingram's yacht forcing Rae to come with him, Billy Zane gives an extraordinary performance making Hughie a mixed up and sometimes sympathetic Psycho (what made him the way he is, is never explained in the course of the film). Rae after loosing her little son at the beginning of the film now has to fight to stay in touch with her husband ,determined to succeed she manages to keep things calm and even seduces Hughie at one point to keep him deluded (although there is a suggestion she finds Hughie attractive - Hughie couldn't be more different to her Navy Captain husband). The only slight fault with the movie is the finale - but you need this kind of ending after such a tense terrifying drama.

Good film enjoyed it

Watched this last night - loved it at the time. It's all rather laughable now. The plot is ludicrous. She is trapped on board by this psychopath and goes around biting her lip and being pretty. Best acting by the dog.

Dead Calm is directed by Phillip Noyce and adapted to screenplay by Terry Hayes from the novel of the same name written by Charles Williams. It stars Sam Neill, Nicole Kidman and Billy Zane. Music is by Graeme Revell and cinematography by Dean Semler.After losing their young son in a car accident, John (Neill) and Rae Ingram (Kidman) head out alone on their yacht for an ocean vacation. Whilst taking in some R&R, the couple spy a ship drifting in the distance, then a man in a dinghy hurriedly rows towards them. He boards their yacht, frantic and panicked, he tells them the ship is sinking and that all on board are dead, killed by food poisoning. His name is Hughie Warriner (Billy Zane), and the Ingram's are about to wish they had never met him....The Saracen and The Orpheus.It's so refreshing to find a thriller that works without tricks or elaborate plotting, where the narrative is stripped down to the bare bones and played out purely by three characters. Dead Calm, whilst not exactly the most credible of thrillers from the 80s, contains genuine suspense, a pot boiling heart and production value of some distinction. Director Noyce deals in psychological studies, primarily that of a lunatic and that of a woman beset with grief having to use her mental fortitude to hopefully save herself and her husband.Noyce and his team get the maximum amount of edge of the seat thrills from a small isolated yacht in the middle of a vast ocean, with tight camera work and nifty editing, it's a film of quality that belies its pared back production. Even ace Aussie photographer Semler (previously Mad Max 2/Razorback, latterly Dances With Wolves/Waterworld) creates beauty out of such a sparse set up, where the blues and greens of the ocean warm the soul and the red sunsets please the eyes. They be glimpses of Mother Earth that give the Ingram's something tangible to fight for.With the plot requiring Neill to be in his own isolated hell, he turns in a more measured performance, perfect in fact, but it's Zane and Kidman who steal the show. This would prove to be the launching point of Kidman's career, and it hints at the top actress she would become. She gives Rae Ingram a real strength through adversity, with energy in abundance, intelligence and a simmering sexuality, she's a lady character earning respect by film lovers because of Kidman's performance. Zane is suitably edgy, very much giving Hughie a man-child persona, he too exudes a dangerous sexuality, and when it inevitably kicks off, he is scary into the bargain.A couple of daft character decisions within the story, and a WTF finale, stop it from being near the top of the thriller movie pantheon. But it's not far off from sitting with the best and it remains fresh and entertaining as the decades roll by. 8/10

Great film that uses a simple plot, great acting and a novel set. Sam Neill is brilliant, Billy Zane mad and menacing and Nicole Kidman plays convincingly. A woman (Kidman) and her sailor husband (Neill) are on a yacht cruise to get over a family trauma. The husband is left for dead on a sinking old tub when Zane steals their yacht with Kidman (Neill's wife) aboard. Kidman has to find a way of getting control of the yacht if she is to get back in time to save her husband; not easy as violent Zane is paranoid and dangerous.Imaginative and tense, you're never quite sure how it will all end... actually, it has several plateaux before it finally reaches its peak. Highly recommended but prepare for a well bitten lip or two. Shame about the pooch!

I love to watch this movie very high recommended many times we watch it

très bon film avec billy zane .je n'avais pas vu ce film depuis longtemps.très content de mon achat qui inclus le language en français.

J'ai été marin et cette histoire est très credible

En la descripcion señala: «Inglés (Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo), Inglés (Dolby TrueHD), Español». Pues bien NO EXISTE ESPAÑOL. Que nadie confíe en ello. El artículo no es malo, pero Amazon no suele cuidar en absoluto las especificaciones de lo que vende y, de vez en cuando, te sientes estafado.

J'avais déjà vu ce film à la télé et je souhaitait le revoir. Ce film tient en sur le qui vive et nous sensibilise, qu'en mer, il n'y a plus de loi et d'autorité pour venir à notre secours.

Film angoissant, nerveux avec des acteurs très bons dans leur jeu (certaines scènes n'ont pas dû être faciles à tourner). Nicole Kidman à ses débuts a déjà l'étoffe d'une Star. Frissons garantis.