It’s somewhat unfortunate that while many people are familiar with the 2010 BP oil spill (to date the worst in history) and the effect it had on our ocean for many months, so many don’t seem to also process the very real location that spill came from and people who suffered over it. I highly recommend the documentary THE GREAT INVISIBLE by Margaret Brown, which explores the catastrophe in detail. The name of the drilling vessel the spill came from was the Deepwater Horizon, and that fateful day is also the subject of the new Peter Berg dramatic movie starring Mark Wahlberg (their second collaboration after LONE SURVIVOR). While some may look at this as an action thriller set on an oil rig, it more importantly helps put a face (or faces) on the human sacrifice that came out of that terrible accident.

Mike Williams (Wahlberg) and his wife Felicia (Kate Hudson) are getting used to long stretches apart. Mike works on the giant floating oil rig Deepwater Horizon, drilling oil for BP, and is sometimes gone for many weeks at a time. He prepares for his latest three-week stretch of work, saying goodbye to his young daughter and promising he’ll bring her back a genuine dinosaur fossil – in a clever bit of exposition for the audience, the daughter demonstrates with a Coke can and some honey how the drill works, pulling up oil from the ground and separating out the mud and deep earth… she equates the process to her daddy fighting monsters or dinosaurs. Williams is joined on the rig by Andrea Fleytas (Gina Rodriguez) and supervisor James Harrell (Kurt Russell) who everyone just calls “Mr. Jimmy.” They’re also visited by BP executives Vidrine (John Malkovich) and Kaluza (Brad Leland), who want the drilling to speed up as they’re behind on their timetable. This rush is met with disdain by the crew, especially since the floating rig is already in a state of disrepair and waiting long overdue service. During a pressure test, the execs push the crew to move things along, and it isn’t long before a horrible explosion rocks the rig to its core, and begins to destroy it from the inside out. Now the crew must fight for their lives before there’s nothing left of their former workplace.

Like TITANIC or even the more recent SULLY, this is one of those films where we all know the outcome, but the story is about the journey to get there. At times DEEPWATER HORIZON feels more like a blockbuster action movie than a true story tale, and it’s safe to say many sequences have been pumped up with Hollywood flash and flare. But the core narrative still manages to find solid beats with the various characters, making the whole exercise engaging, frightening, heartbreaking, and perhaps hopeful in the end. Director Peter Berg has mastered building intensity, and this is a great showcase of that ability. When stuff explodes and people get tossed around the room, it looks painful and raw. This is not one of those movies where someone flies from an explosion and gets right back up to run a mile. These characters go through hell, and we feel for them while it’s happening. Wahlberg finds a good balance of realism in playing Williams, a man who is good at his job, but like everyone else finds himself unprepared for the horror that hits them by surprise. It’s a role that’s heroic and honorable, but more in the sense that this guy does what needs to get done, and isn’t looking for accolades while he’s doing it. Wahlberg is our eyes and ears within the chaos, and we feel for him through every step.

Most of the supporting roles are just that, various characters meant to pull the story together but not overpower the hero’s journey. That said, everyone plays their part quite well. Gina Rodriguez holds her own as the (apparent) lone female of the crew, and successfully proves she can handle a big movie setting after mostly being known for her work on JANE THE VIRGIN. She also plays her part with realistic hesitation in the right moments, never feeling like a Hollywood heroine, just a woman trying to work it out as things get progressively worse. Kurt Russell adds a layer of gravitas to the proceedings as Mr. Jimmy, the wise voice among the hardened crew, and really embodies the noble elder late in the story after taking a major pounding from the blasts. Dylan O’Brien is quite good as one of the young drillers, playing the kind of hard working guy who is never fully appreciated, but still does his job well. John Malkovich finds some great moments as the story’s antagonist, capturing the ideals of a company man who finds quotas more important than safety. He’s a great villain that never feels like a villain, just serves his purpose well within the story. I was also happy to see the great Brad Leland (FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS) as another one of BP’s executives, playing it smarmy and holding his own next to Malkovich like he was always meant to be there. The only cast member who feels a little lost is Kate Hudson, probably because she doesn’t have much to do other than talk to her husband on her laptop, and worry when she loses the connection. But the few moments she does have are played rather well.

The effects and stunts on this film are nothing short of incredible, putting us right in the middle of the action and feeling very real and intense, even if you know some scenes have to be digitally enhanced. Peter Berg knows how to handle action, as LONE SURVIVOR proved well, but this is a different kind of display in that here we’re seeing more of a disaster story. It makes me wonder how Berg would handle something like THE TOWERING INFERNO or any other throwback to the star-studded disaster flicks of the 1970s. But even with all the glitz and glare of the fiery sequences on display here, we still manage to get a loving look at the hard working folks who had to endure this, and the movie helps illustrate just how bad this experience was in the moment. The final sequence had the entire audience in hard tears, really capturing the weight of what these folks went through. While DEEPWATER HORIZON may not be the best film of 2016, it is easily one of the most powerful cinematic experiences of the year. Be sure to stay through the credits where you’ll get a look at the real people being depicted in the film by the lead actors, along with photos and names of those who did not survive the horrific ordeal.

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