DEAD CALM (1989)
Are we sure that Billy Zane isn't an evil bastard in real life? He's just too good at playing villains, even if it's a centuries-old demon in Demon Knight. Oh my...is he a centuries-old demon??? Possibly, but if his roles reflect his corporeal existence, I'd be more inclined to believe that he's a creep on a schooner. Dead Calm isn't an outright horror film. It's an ichorous thriller, if I'm being honest. IF! Sam Neill and Nicole Kidman are a couple attempting to relax at sea. They are still processing their grief after losing their son in an auto accident months prior. They're nice folks, so they don't hesitate to help a stranded windjammer whose ship is sinking. The crew? Dead. The cause? Presumably, food poisoning.
Hmm...does that sound suspicious to you? This isn't a "body count" flick, but it doesn't need hurry-scurry butchery. It has a prosperity of suspense. For most of the running time, our heavy-hearted lovebirds are separated by copious amounts of ocean. There are multitudes of junctures where it doesn't seem like they're going to find their way back to each other (alive anyway). If I were a shitty critic, I'd say that I was on the edge of my seat. IF! So yeah, you'll want to rent Dead Calm. Great acting (Kidman is incredible, especially considering the fact that she was a flippin' teenager), resourceful camerawork, and au courant shots of the dinosaur animatronics.
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