**
Interesting progression from character (book) to action (original movie) to special effects (this film). Not that there isn't plenty of action here, but with very little attention having been paid to the characters, it's the special effects that carry the day. It's another one of those movies claiming to be "based on" a book (in this case, The Poseidon Adventure by Paul Gallico) when "suggested by" would be a more accurate credit. Nothing remains of Gallico's novel except the bare bones plot of passengers on a capsized luxury liner making their way up to the bottom of the ship in hopes of rescue. None of his characters survive the adaptation except in distant echoes. Our new heroes include a professional gambler who just might be James Bond working undercover (Josh Lucas), an ex-firefighter who is also the ex-mayor of New York (Kurt Russell), his semi-rebellious daughter (Emmy Rossum), and a gay man who is gay (Richard Dreyfuss). So, yeah, let's root for these clowns. The special effects are good, though.
Interesting progression from character (book) to action (original movie) to special effects (this film). Not that there isn't plenty of action here, but with very little attention having been paid to the characters, it's the special effects that carry the day. It's another one of those movies claiming to be "based on" a book (in this case, The Poseidon Adventure by Paul Gallico) when "suggested by" would be a more accurate credit. Nothing remains of Gallico's novel except the bare bones plot of passengers on a capsized luxury liner making their way up to the bottom of the ship in hopes of rescue. None of his characters survive the adaptation except in distant echoes. Our new heroes include a professional gambler who just might be James Bond working undercover (Josh Lucas), an ex-firefighter who is also the ex-mayor of New York (Kurt Russell), his semi-rebellious daughter (Emmy Rossum), and a gay man who is gay (Richard Dreyfuss). So, yeah, let's root for these clowns. The special effects are good, though.