Juggernaut (1974)
Calling everyone who wasn’t included in The Poseidon Adventure or The Neptune Factor: join the cast of Juggernaut, another disaster movie aboard an ocean liner. This all-star cast includes Omar Sharif as the captain, Anthony Hopkins, Richard Harris, Shirley Knight, Roy Kinnear, David Hemmings, Cyril Cusack, and Ian Holm. The set-up is fairly straight-forward, since you know going in that it’s a disaster movie: there are several bombs aboard a cruise ship set to explode if the madman doesn’t get his ransom money. As Scotland Yard races against time, the liner’s passengers struggle through what might be the last days of their lives.
What I loved most about this movie was the realism of the crew aboard the cruise ship. One of the workers was an Englishman but pretended not to speak English when around the passengers. The ship encountered a bout of turbulent water, and as he zig-zagged down the corridor with a drink on a tray, one guest bumped into him and spilled the liquid. He merely smiled and pretended it was no problem at all, until his back was turned. Most people who go on a cruise don’t think about the crew being paid to show them a good time. For those men, it’s hardly fun and games, and sometimes the last thing they want to do is smile.
Roy Kinnear’s performance absolutely made this movie: he was outgoing and friendly to entertain the passengers, but when they weren’t looking, he was free to show his real emotions. While knocking himself out during bingo, he rolls his eyes and grits his teeth. Gathering everyone to prepare for the lifeboats, he’s full of positive energy until he’s allowed to show his fear for a few seconds. When everyone’s afraid the ship will explode at any moment, he still hosts a costume ball and announces each song with a smile, “Here’s one called ‘I Can’t Get Over You – So I’ll Get Up and Go Around’,” but when his “mask” is off, he shares a dance with Shirley Knight and feels just as human as the next fellow.
If you like your disaster movies to be action-packed, you might not like this one very much. Juggernaut has tons of tension and slow-building suspense sequences, but it’s not an explosion a minute like The Towering Inferno, which was unfortunately released the same year. But if you like realism amidst impending doom, you’ll find a lot to appreciate.
DLM Warning: If you suffer from vertigo or dizzy spells, like my mom does, this movie might not be your friend. There are swirling camera movements during the first few minutes, and since the entire movie takes place on a ship over turbulent water, there are lots of tilts and bobs, and that will make you sick. In other words, "Don't Look, Mom!"
Want to watch it? Click here to see it on ok.ru and thanks "Juhi Thaker" for posting!
More Richard Harris movies here!
What I loved most about this movie was the realism of the crew aboard the cruise ship. One of the workers was an Englishman but pretended not to speak English when around the passengers. The ship encountered a bout of turbulent water, and as he zig-zagged down the corridor with a drink on a tray, one guest bumped into him and spilled the liquid. He merely smiled and pretended it was no problem at all, until his back was turned. Most people who go on a cruise don’t think about the crew being paid to show them a good time. For those men, it’s hardly fun and games, and sometimes the last thing they want to do is smile.
Roy Kinnear’s performance absolutely made this movie: he was outgoing and friendly to entertain the passengers, but when they weren’t looking, he was free to show his real emotions. While knocking himself out during bingo, he rolls his eyes and grits his teeth. Gathering everyone to prepare for the lifeboats, he’s full of positive energy until he’s allowed to show his fear for a few seconds. When everyone’s afraid the ship will explode at any moment, he still hosts a costume ball and announces each song with a smile, “Here’s one called ‘I Can’t Get Over You – So I’ll Get Up and Go Around’,” but when his “mask” is off, he shares a dance with Shirley Knight and feels just as human as the next fellow.
If you like your disaster movies to be action-packed, you might not like this one very much. Juggernaut has tons of tension and slow-building suspense sequences, but it’s not an explosion a minute like The Towering Inferno, which was unfortunately released the same year. But if you like realism amidst impending doom, you’ll find a lot to appreciate.
DLM Warning: If you suffer from vertigo or dizzy spells, like my mom does, this movie might not be your friend. There are swirling camera movements during the first few minutes, and since the entire movie takes place on a ship over turbulent water, there are lots of tilts and bobs, and that will make you sick. In other words, "Don't Look, Mom!"
Want to watch it? Click here to see it on ok.ru and thanks "Juhi Thaker" for posting!
More Richard Harris movies here!