Ghost Ship (Widescreen Edition)
by Steve Beck
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DVD details
Actor: Desmond Harrington, Gabriel Byrne, Isaiah Washington, Julianna Margulies, Ron EldardDirector: Steve Beck
Brand: Warner Brothers
Producer: Bruce Berman
Producer: Gilbert Adler
Producer: Joel Silver
Producer: Richard Mirisch
Producer: Robert Zemeckis
Writer: John Pogue
Writer: Mark Hanlon
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); English (Original Language); French (Dubbed)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, Dubbed, DVD, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.85:1
Running Time: 91 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2003-03-28
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Studio: Warner Home Video
DVD Reviews of Ghost Ship (Widescreen Edition)
DVD Review: "I think I saw something I couldn't have possibly have seen."
Summary: 3 Stars
`Old man rhythm is in my shoes
No use sittin and a singin the blues
So be my guest, you got nothin to lose
Won't ya let me take you on a sea cruise?
Oo-ee, oo-ee baby
Oo-ee, oo-ee baby
Oo-ee, oo-ee baby
Won't ya let me take you on a sea cruise?' - `Sea Cruise', sung by Frankie Ford
Boy, that's about as weak a tie in reference I've come up with in awhile to start a review...directed by Steve Beck (Thir13en Ghosts), Ghost Ship (2002) features Gabriel Byrne (The Usual Suspects), Julianna Margulies ("ER"), Ron Eldard (Mystery, Alaska), Isaiah Washington (Romeo Must Die), Karl `Eomer' Urban (The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers), Alex Dimitriades (Deuce Bigalow: European Gigolo), Desmond Harrington (Wrong Turn), and Emily Browning (Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events).
As the film begins we're aboard a luxury ocean liner set sometime in the past, I'm guessing, given the size of that beehive hairdo on one of the women. Anyway, while a number of passengers and crew are cutting a rug on one of the decks, there's an unfortunate accident (or is it?) with an overly taut steel cable resulting in nearly everyone on the deck (except for a little red-headed girl, played by Emily Browning) being literally cut down in size. Fast forward to the present where we meet a crew of professional sea salvagers, led by a man named Murphy (Byrne). Among the crew is Murphy's right hand, a woman named Epps (Margulies), divers Dodge (Eldard) and Munder (Urban), first mate Greer (Washington), and Santos (Dimitriades), the mechanic. After a recently successful haul the group is approached by a man named Jack Ferriman (Harrington) with a proposition. Seems Ferriman, a pilot of sorts, knows the location of a derelict ship, and wants Murphy and his crew to salvage it, with a percentage of the take going to himself. After agreeing on terms they locate the ship they learn it's actually the Antonia Graza (given the ship's rusty condition it should probably be renamed the USS Tetanus), an Italian ocean liner missing for the last forty some odd years (it also happens to be the same ship we saw at the beginning...big surprise). Anyhow, as the crew begins its reconnaissance, a subtle strangeness sets in, indicating perhaps they're not alone (the red-headed girl we saw at the beginning appears and disappears). The crew gets a little jittery, but their fears are temporarily waylaid after finding a fortune in gold in the cargo hold, to which they decide to forgo trying to save the ship (which is severely damaged and sinking), and make off with the gold...sounds like a plan, but forces conspire to keep them on the derelict ship, where they eventually discover some disturbing truths about what happened to those previously aboard the Antonia Graza...
It's probably worth mentioning up front the opening sequence is pretty gory, so if you've a weak stomach or easily disgusted, you may want to skip the film. Once past this, there's not much else that comes close to this level of nastiness. While the opening bit didn't bother me, it seemed odd (and unnecessary) its inclusion given I was expecting more of a traditional, psychological type ghost story. Well, it turns out the director Steve Beck, has a background in special effects, so I guess he wanted to start off the film with something he knew...and speaking of effects, I think that's probably one element many people who've seen this film can agree on is that the special effects tend to drive the movie more than anything else. One aspect I found especially strong was the settings as it appeared there was a whole lot of effort involved in creating atmosphere in terms of the Antonia Graza. As far as the other elements of the film, the story, the script, the performances, well, I really wasn't impressed. I just never felt the sense of dread I would hope to feel in a solid ghost story, which is, in my opinion, what this feature strives to be...the story, while containing some interesting aspects (along with some serious plot holes), fell a little flat, the script was pretty minimal (which was more a positive than a negative), and the performances barely there and a bit too artificial (laced with a whole lot of machismo), but this may have been due to the skimpy material the actors were given. The film does sometimes move a little too slow as the intent seemed to be a build up towards some not so juicy revelations (often shown in flashbacks), but I thought most of the characters not very interesting so spending time with them felt almost a chore (once they started getting knocked off I felt very little empathy for them). There was one shining moment well into the feature and that when an Italian actress named Francesca Rettondini shows us the goods (specifically her goods) that helped make the overall experience somewhat more worthwhile. All in all this isn't a rotten film, but I just wish the writers had put as much effort into the story as the filmmakers put into the effects.
While the actual film may not have been all that hot, the picture, presented in anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1), looks beautiful and sharply detailed, and the Dolby Surround 5.1 audio, available in both English and French comes across well. There's a good helping of extras including a making of documentary (15:05), a visual FX featurette (6:01), a featurette titled A Closer Look at the Gore (5:30), another focusing on the design of the ghost ship (5:44), a music video featuring the band Mudvayne and their song `Not Falling', which was used in the film, a puzzle game titled `Secrets of the Antonia Graza', cast and crew filmographies, a theatrical trailer, and subtitles in English, French, and Spanish. Also, the DVD case features a nifty holographic type image on the cover.
Cookieman108
Description of Ghost Ship (Widescreen Edition)
SALVAGE CREWS NEXT BIG JOB SEEMS LIKE BUSINESS AS USUAL, TOWING IN A SUNKEN VESSEL. BUT THE TRIP IN FROM THE BERING SEA TURNS EVIL AS THE SHIP IS HAUNTED.While it offers nothing new for horror buffs, Ghost Ship relocates its haunted house clichés to an eerily effective setting. The Italian luxury liner Antonia Graza, its fate a mystery for 40 years, has suddenly reappeared in the chilly Bering Sea. Lured by a seemingly harmless proposition, Gabriel Byrne and Julianna Margulies lead a salvage crew (including Ron Eldard, Margulies's offscreen partner and fellow ER alumnus) to claim the wreck. But a grisly prologue--in which we witness the horrific fate of the ship's crew and passengers--makes it clear that bad things are going to happen. And they do... with the predictability of tomorrow's sunrise. The supporting cast is routinely dispatched, but their fates are determined amid outstanding art direction, slick cinematography, and judicious digital trickery, all primed to maximize the doom-laden atmosphere. Director Steve Beck (who remade 13 Ghosts a year earlier) won't win any awards for ingenuity, but Ghost Ship offers a few good chills for a dark and stormy night. --Jeff Shannon
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