judeepolds

24 May 2012

Cracking film

Yet again I seem to like a film that others seem to hate. I thinkpeople expect too much I really do!Sanctum was thoroughly entertaining. At times I fought back tears andfound myself really immersed in the characters.The cinematography was nothing short of amazing, the sense of scale wasstunning. I really felt the claustrophobia as well as the vast openspaces.Not the best film of the year but certainly not deserving of the harshcomments here!Come on folks, give credit where it's due:-)

eve_dolluk

23 May 2012

Average disaster type movie but visually stunning

I didn't get to see this at the cinema so no 3D for me, I did watch itin HD though on a movie channel. I remember never bothering with itwhen it came out as I had read the reviews on here and gave it a miss.I am not sure how good the 3D was in this film but its definitely thesort of film that lends itself to 3D if done properly.Its basically a caving/diving film with a disaster setting, cavers aresearching new territory deep in a cave system when a storm hitsessentially trapping them inside. They now need to find a way out asthe way they came in is blocked.There is nothing really new here story wise and it unfolds like atypical disaster flick, the ham acting reminded me of a 70's disasterflick. What is new is the visual experience which is very good and youalso at times sense the feeling of claustrophobia and asphyxiationthroughout.Good points - Visually stunning, Decent sense of realism, Lack of CGI,Tense moments.Bad points - Hammy acting, Ioan Gruiffards bad American accent, Averagecharacter building. Pacing was a bit quick for this type of film.Overall a decent watch but I may have been disappointed if I had paidmore to watch at the cinema as for that price you would expect theacting to be way better, some of the lines were delivered very badly. Ican imagine this was due to the time they had to film and theenvironment they worked in as this looks like an on location movierather than blue screen based.Overall I was pleasantly surprised once I ignored the bad points (sometimes it can be hard to do ). Could it have been better ??? Hellyes. Was it as bad as some people made out ??? No.I'll give it a 6 but it could well have been a 7 or 8 with betteracting and characters and a slower more tense pace. Its a decentdisaster popcorn flick though and a visually good.Worth a watch on DVD for sure.

Victoria Alexander

23 May 2012

Visually stunning and the 3D is fantastic. Easy to see twice to understand all the tech stuff.

richard-lyons5

22 May 2012

Camerons worst film?

Has James Cameron lost all sense of how to make a film? One look at thescript should have told him this was a stinker. How could such a greatdirector put his name to a film with such stock characters. Like theguy who beams down with Kirk in the Star Treck films you know exactlywho is going to die next! As soon as he says he's going to marry thegirl you know she is going to die. The dialogue is simply awful andbadly delivered, and Rhys Wakefield as 'Josh' the son had me laughingout loud with his facial expressions as his father was dying in hisarms. If you want a good cave adventure film go and see 'The Goonies'again, it's a better film and it's got a Pirate ship'.

jewelia606

20 May 2012

Oh, come on - its not that bad.

Alright, I'll admit that Ioan Gruffud has done much better, same withRichard Roxburgh (one of my all-time favorites, and probably the bestin the film). When I can start going through the cast and saying,"Okay, she'll die, he'll die... My GOD I hope he dies..." and be rightabout it, it's probably not going to be that good a film. That said,it's certainly not the abomination everyone on here claims it to be. Ithas beautiful 3D camera work, and Rhys Wakefield and Richard Roxburghare definitely the two bright spots. Do not go into this expectinganother Avatar or a horror movie like The Descent as many here seem tohave done, but instead an enjoyable adventure flick. I would notrecommend this to anyone who dislikes gore, as there are a few scenesthat are high octane nightmare fuel.

Michael Phillips

19 May 2012

Here and there an image of spectral beauty, assisted by the 3-D technology, floats into view and captures our imagination. But the script, which really should've been called "Sanctimonium," has a serious case of the bends.

Matthew Turner

15 May 2012

Enjoyable disaster-thriller with impressive special effects, spectacular scenery, thrilling set pieces and a strong cast, though the characters are clichéd and the dialogue is pure cheese.

codyiden

15 May 2012

Sanctum (2011)

Sanctum is the story of a group of cave divers who become trapped in amostly unexplored group of caves when a tropical storm hits sooner thanexpected and begins to flood the caves forcing them to search foranother way out.The film features a small and relatively unknown cast with theexception of Ioan Gruffud and Richard Roxburgh, both of whom are on topform. Rhys Wakefield stars as the son of Roxburgh's character. The restof the cast do well but add nothing overly special to the film.Roxburgh and Wakefield continue to remain strong throughout theirharrowing experiences and their at first broken relationship eventuallyculminates into one of respect and love. Gruffud's character begins asa rich and carefree playboy but as he undergoes the horrific journeythrough the caves he begins to transform into a desperate and insidiousperson.Definitely see this in the 3D, this film is stunning and breathtaking,with wonderful 3D effects that totally immerse you in the film and makeyou feel that you too are trapped within the caves and swimmingunderwater.

Brian Orndorf

15 May 2012

Looks to engage the audience through dramatic cliché, leaving a nifty premise to wither while lifeless actors spout rotten dialogue and an unimaginative director stages substandard action set pieces.

Forget_Never

14 May 2012

One of the worst films ever made

The only good thing about was the guy from Titanic, the American dude.He was the only likable and developed character. Besides that, the filmwas slow, annoying, clichéd, uninspiring and its characters wereseverely undeveloped. The suspense was creaky and dull, I mean, therewas just no suspense, it was all shouting and yelling before anythingbad that happens (which kills the suspense).The music was surprisingly good, but the direction and cinematographywas awful. The plot was been there done that, it was done many timesbefore. A group of people going on adventure that die one by one -laughable.The film was confused, it wanted to be a drama and also a thriller -that just failed. The actors couldn't even act in both scary anddramatic bits. Nearly all of the Australian characters were annoyingand not likable. They were very cardboard cut characters you couldn'tcare less for if they died. And most of their death was laughable andlame. Oh, the main character was a douche bag you couldn't care lessfor. He was an awful actor, and his dad was worse - what a cold hearteddude.This was an incredibly boring, unpleasant film. Please do not wasteyour money on this piece of tripe. A very third rate cheap film,seriously. I was tortured while watching this horrid film.

laurakneen

14 May 2012

Claustrophobic fun

Forget the critics, this is an awesome movie. It's fast-paced,action-packed and spectacular. I was tense the whole time and came outfeeling like I'd been holding my breath for hours.Seriously, most critics seem more interested in showing how cynical andcool they are than actually enjoying a great adventure film. I've readlots of reviews, so I'll address a few of the complaints made.Bad dialogue: It's not Shakespeare, but it sets up the relationshipsbetween characters quickly and serves the action well. It also managesto explain the basics of caving and scuba diving (which most of theaudience would be unfamiliar with) without seeming too preachy.Bad acting: I thought everyone was pretty great with what they had todo. Again, it's not bloody Shakespeare.Predictable: not to me. Yes, they're stuck in a cave so there's only somany things that can happen. But what does happen is really bloodyexciting. I guess if you spend your whole life watching movies (ascritics do) then any action movie would be predictable after a while.Unlikeable characters: Um, since when did every character have to belikable? And even if you don't particularly like a character, surelyyou don't want them to die a horrible death down a cave. The truth issome of the characters you really like, some grow on you and some youalmost want to drown with your own bare hands. So a good mix.Weak roles for women: I disagree. The women are put in freakysituations and react in human ways. Though I didn't quite understandwhat happened to Victoria - that's one thing the film could have doneslightly better.I've also heard critics complain about too much swearing (seriously, ifyou've ever spent time around real-life explorers they're generally nottoo concerned with social niceties, especially in life-or-deathsituations). And some reviewers complained that there were no monstersin the cave - seriously! That was what was so great about the story -it was extreme but it all could have happened. Man vs nature and vseach other - much more interesting than another monster flick.Anyway, Sanctum is excellent. Go see it.

Milan Marin

13 May 2012

Sucks big time!

Very, very bad movie. Dreadful acting, directing is awful, there is nothing in the movie that worths the IMAX 3D ticket price.Don't waste your money!!!

sam_i_amgirl

13 May 2012

Not as bad as I expected

I wasn't looking forward to seeing this movie after reading the poorreviews on this site and viewing the awful trailer. Not only did itlook predictable and even worse - a hyped-up James Cameron flick, I'mnot into action-adventures with their clichéd and unrealistic storylines. I particularly don't like 3D (makes me nauseous) so I chose tosee it in 2D - not as exciting, but viewable.While sitting in the theatre (total audience members: 3, on a Saturdaynight), I cynically listed off to my friend which characters were tokick it, and whom were going to start out enemies and end up bondingjust before one or the other died. Except for one, I was far off forall my predictions. This movie, despite it's faults, did have a fairamount of surprises, suspense and tension. The issue of ethics was astrong basis of the movie too - something that isn't always talkedabout. I didn't feel that my money was wasted to be honest.For those who want to see a memorable and heart-felt movie: this isn'tit. However it's not a bad flick at all. It's something that you don'thave to think too hard about but can still enjoy without feeling likeyou wasted two hours of your life (like some Hollywood trash that's outthere these days). Give it a chance.

BeefStroganoff

13 May 2012

Worst. Movie. Ever

This film has annoying, unlikeable and undeveloped characters. Itsstory was very run of the mill and been-there-done that. The acting wasatrocious. The lead actors - father and son - were so friggin' hatefuland annoying. I didn't like them at all.The suspense was dull and the dramatic scenes were cheesy. I was verybored in the theatres. This film was a torture. I really wanted it toend. Nearly every character's death was contrived and expected. Youknew what was going to happen.The music was good, though, and I liked Ioan Gruffudd's performance -the only standout in this tripe.

naptime84

11 May 2012

Pointless

I don't know what the point of making this movie was but hopefully itsnot the start of a trend from James Cameron. This time we follow a teamof explorers as they head into an unexplored cave system andunfortunately things start to go terribly wrong.If that plot soundsfamiliar thats because it is. The Decent had the exact same plot,albeit with monsters, but it it was a much better movie in every way.AsI was watching sanctum i didn't care about anything that was going on.As i said before I hope this isn't the start of a trend from Cameronbecause like avatar this movie is all about the visuals, and i guess ifthat's all you want from your movie then its a success.In every otherway it fails. Watch The Decent instead and skip this.

chrismsawin

11 May 2012

A dull, predictable thriller

Sanctum certainly seems to have a lot of potential, doesn't it? It wasfilmed in 3D and produced by Avatar director James Cameron. Even ifyou're like me and not completely sold by the TV spots and trailers,it's bound to be decent because Cameron is somewhat involved, right?Keep telling yourself that. Sanctum is probably the most disappointingtheatrical experience in the first few months of the year.You'll probably notice how fantastic the film looks. Sanctum wasobviously filmed in 3D and uses the same techniques Cameron used forAvatar, which also isn't surprising. Nearly everything seems to jumpoff the screen, but at the same time the film doesn't really have anystandout moments where the effect is utilized in a way that really wowsits audience. Most of the underwater scenes are spectacular though.Seeing those vast underwater cavities, even if they were probablymostly created in front of a green screen, is incredible. There arealso several scenes where you're looking at the giant hole in the earththe main characters first enter as if you were looking down from thesky while it's raining that are really memorable because of theperspective. So at face value, Sanctum has the appearance of a goodfilm or at least a decent one.Nearly everything else about the film is awful. You know things aregoing to go downhill once Josh mutters the line, "What could possiblygo wrong in a cave?" Everyone in the film just makes terrible decisionsfrom then on out. Remember that thing that happened last time? Let'smake it a point to mention that, so it won't happen again. Sure enough,it happens again. DON'T do whatever you're thinking about doing. I knowit's a drastic situation and you have to think on your toes, but youwill surely die if you do what you're thinking of doing. So what doesthe person do? That thing they were advised not to. So guess whathappens? Josh and Victoria are probably the worst of them. Josh pointsout the stupidest of observations. When the cave first starts to flood,he's in the team heading to the surface but decides to go back for hisdad and the others still down in the cave. The cave is flooding. Wateris pouring in. It's very obvious what's happening. So Josh runs in,around rocks, all out of breath and calling out to his dad. When hereaches the cave entrance, he yells out the brilliant statement that,"THE CAVE IS FLOODING!" Gee, you think? Victoria does something in thefilm that is incredibly stupid and you know it is right when she doesit, then later looks back on it realizing she should have done what shewas advised to do in the first place. Do you want to defile a deadwoman's corpse or develop hypothermia and freeze to death? The answershould be obvious. The rest of the characters aren't so great eitherthough. Josh's dad, Frank, is basically emotionless and nothing morethan an Australian version of Christian Bale's Batman while IoanGruffudd's Carl is the typical selfish character that makes a lot ofover the top decisions that never pay off.Throw in the lame attempts at humor and terrible dialogue and you haveyourself an hour and forty nine minute groanfest. Carl mentionssomething about Frank's anus being so tight that a dog won't be able tohear him fart while Crazy George spews nothing but bad jokes and evenworse dialogue the entire film. Developing the clap in Mexico alongwith advising to grow gills if your equipment goes faulty and tellingsomeone to calm down because the "panic vulture sits on your shoulder"are all things that are memorable for all the wrong reasons.Some of the tight spaces traveled through while underwater were able totrigger my claustrophobia at times, but it was nothing that hadn't beendone better before. Remember The Descent? Most of me was wantingCrawlers to show up and kill everyone in this horrible film after itwas established that every character had been dropped on their head atsome point in their childhood. The other part of me was wondering whythis pushed for an R-rating. Other than a few brief moments of gore andthe F-bomb being dropped a few dozen times, the film could've easilybeen edited down to a PG-13 rating to appeal to a wider audience. Thenagain, with Cameron's name slapped onto the film and the main marketingploy, maybe a PG-13 film that mostly takes place underwater wouldremind too many people of Cameron's 1989 film The Abyss and make themthink it was a remake or something. Well, let me tell you, this doesn'tcome anywhere close to even touching The Abyss.Sanctum is a dull, predictable, and cliché thriller with terribledialogue, a lame attempt at humor, some of the dumbest characters toever be included in a film, and just a rather underwhelming journey inthe end. Don't go into this expecting it to be another Avatar justbecause Cameron is connected to the film in some way or because it wasfilmed in 3D. Don't even expect a good film. If you have any interestin Sanctum, I recommend waiting for the rental because it really isn'tworth paying expensive movie theater ticket prices in addition towhatever you have to pay for 3D films.

07 May 2012

Poor actingscript but incredible visuals

About 25 years ago on a real-life cave diving expedition (Nullarbor), a freak storm collapsed the entrance to a cave and trapped 13-18 people. Andrew Wight was part of that expedition and drew upon that experience in writing this script.It's basically a man -vs- nature survival movie, with a background story going on with the relationship between "Frank" who seems a tough character, and his son "Josh".Actor Richard Roxburgh (Frank) puts in a fabulous performance, but while watching this movie I kept finding myself noting most of the other performances seemed poor (especially the ladies) as well as some of the interaction scripting. (a bad sign in a movie)However, while it is not likely to win any acting or writing/directing awards - the struggle to survive will catch you up in it here and there, the cave visuals are realistic and incredible, the action is pretty good and camera work was very well done - which makes it worth a view.

Robbie Collin

06 May 2012

Suffocating, nerve-fraying and deeply uncomfortable to watch. Just not in the ways intended.

Saad Khan

05 May 2012

Good cinematography with terrible direction and atrocious performances.

SANCTUM – TRASH IT ( C ) Sanctum loosely inspired by the true eventslooks completely unreal besides the exotic caves. I've never seen soterrible performances in mainstream (James Cameron) movie ever. Thecinematography of the movie is outstanding and the way it manages toshowcase the beauty of the caves and why people spend so much time incaves is impressive but when it comes to story, direction andperformances. This movie lacks big time, I was surprise to see IoanGruffudd performing so loud and obnoxious. Rhys Wakefield did anaverage job though he was good in his previous Aussie movies. AliceParkinson and Richard Roxburgh are annoying and terrible actors. It wasatrocious to see all actors performing so badly. The movie is defiantlywatchable considering what will happened to them but if you 'rethinking that you care about these people so, you don't and the waythey die left right and center, it's really poor attempt to createsuspense.

James Berardinelli

05 May 2012

There's something about an effective "man versus nature" film that gets the blood pumping.