In some ways "The Poseidon Adventure" is a bad film. The dialog is occasionally goofy and the characters are mostly caricatures. But you come to expect that from producer Irwin Allen....as his shows and movies were all about spectacle and disaster and had little in the way of realistic human interactions. In these ways, his films are a bit like Cecil B. DeMille's.
I just saw "The Poseidon Adventure" today. It was my second time--the first was in the theater when I was a boy. Both times I enjoyed it....but this time I could really see how cartoony many of the folks were in the film. There's the preacher (Gene Hackman)...a profane man who curses a lot and seems to have no faith in anything but himself. Then, there's the obese lady (Shelley Winters) and there are quite a few fat remarks at her expense in the film. And, there's the angry man (Ernest Borgnine) and his ex-prostitute wife (Stella Stevens). There are more...all seemingly one-dimensional characters occupying this disaster-fest. But, oddly, despite itself the film IS entertaining and you won't be bored watching it. The special effects are amazing and the film satisfying if, at times, a bit silly.
I just saw "The Poseidon Adventure" today. It was my second time--the first was in the theater when I was a boy. Both times I enjoyed it....but this time I could really see how cartoony many of the folks were in the film. There's the preacher (Gene Hackman)...a profane man who curses a lot and seems to have no faith in anything but himself. Then, there's the obese lady (Shelley Winters) and there are quite a few fat remarks at her expense in the film. And, there's the angry man (Ernest Borgnine) and his ex-prostitute wife (Stella Stevens). There are more...all seemingly one-dimensional characters occupying this disaster-fest. But, oddly, despite itself the film IS entertaining and you won't be bored watching it. The special effects are amazing and the film satisfying if, at times, a bit silly.