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Thursday, April 25, 2024
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HOLLYWOOD FLOOD
EDITOR'S PICK
Rating: *
Films dealing with catastrophe are a Hollywood specialty. One director, Ronald
Emmirich, has even made it his business to destroy the world with newer natural
calamities in his films. That a British film can match this effects extravaganza
yet is wishful thinking.
The British film "Flood" fails in every department.
A storm at sea coincides with high tide and leads to water rushing up the
Thames, flooding most of London. When millions of lives are threatened, you can
guess where clichéd cinema will rush to - a madcap professor, Leonard Morrison,
with all the right calculations and answers at the right time, a man who has
pursued science at the cost of a disgruntled family.
The professor`s son Rob (Robert Carlyle) doesn`t even talk to his father. He
works for a company providing technology to a company that is building a barrier
meant to stop flooding at the Thames. While the son’s estranged wife Samantha
works directly for that company.
As you guessed right at this coincidence, it would be up to the Morrison family
to save London city, but not without one of them heroically sacrificing his own
life in the end.
Catastrophe movies are not just an opportunity for great special effect, but
they also provide us with a chance to delve deeper into philosophical and
existential concerns of humanity. Though most films, especially the ones by
Emmerich have gone in for the special effects, others like "Deep
Impact" have indeed delved into such questions effectively.
In Emmerich’s formulaic catastrophe films like "Day After Tomorrow"
and the recent "2012", he at least deals with the cause and effect
cycle of natural calamities of them being caused by human actions, direct or
indirect. "Flood" does not even hint at a reason of any sort.
It is a simplistic story where there’s a problem and a group of people deal
with the problem. Nature is simply shown as a villain, instead of also being a
probable victim of human excesses.
A good cast of some of the finest British actors has been wasted in what could
have been a much better film in the hands of able writers and director. The
scenes of flood are too inconsistent to leave an impact.
Attention to detail is missing. Too much time is wasted in lingering at moments
which could have been easily skipped. The soundtrack has neither coherence nor
consistency with what is happening on screen.
However, considering how one angry volcano in one remote corner of the world
brought an entire worlds’ air traffic to standstill, "Flood" might
serve as a reminder to those of us who believe in the polemic of human
superiority.
We have been, despite our advances in science, and will remain at the mercy of
nature. We might want to respect that fact to keep us humble and to prevent the
destruction of our way of lives as shown in "Flood" or by the ash spit
out by a loud-mouthed volcano.
It is also disconcerting that a film made in 2007 finds release now in Indian
theatres. The distributors wanted to capitalise upon the interest generated by
"2012", obvious from their promos, not realising that that is
precisely the reason a film like "Flood" would fail.
Audiences addicted to the spectacle of a film like "2012" will not
take kindly to the lack of it.
