Submerged (2000)
* 1/2 (out of 4)
Low-budget action picture has a plane hijacked so that a group of terrorists can steal a missile launching code. The plane ends up crashing into the ocean and sinking to the bottom so it's up to some Navy Seals to try and save the passengers.
If the plot sounds familiar then you've probably seen AIRPORT '77. That disaster film is one of my favorite pictures so when I heard about this movie I just had to check it out. Director Fred Olen Ray is a master at low-budget movies and he at least made this one look like a professional production but sadly there's really not too much here to enjoy.
THe biggest problem with the film is the fact that there's just no drama, tension or suspense. The film is well-made, like I said, but at the same time one wishes that there was some sort of connection to the characters that made you care about them or that the film really made you fear that some sort of disaster was going to happen. None of that happened so we were left with a rather flat film.
The film does have some familiar actors including Dennis Weaver, Fred Williamson, Nicole Eggert and even Coolio. Of the cast, Weaver comes off the best playing the rich redneck who likes to drink. The film does offer a couple nice action scenes but the scene with the plane being raised from the ocean is actually footage from AIRPORT '77.
