Submerged - review

[Prisoner 1137]

Just wait till you hear the dubbed voice when Seagal sits down to talk to the black girl.

SO! WAT CHU' GOT!!

 

[seagalfan128]

Sworn Enemy....They're not all American, 5/8 of his team are ex-British Navy/Army, and one of them is Spanish or comes from a spanish speaking country, I don't recall specifically.

Assasin187, almost everyone I talked to said Out For a Kill was bad. Don't worry, first time I saw it I wasn't thrilled about it, but I watched it again and I ended up enjoying it. I really did underestimate it. For Belly of the Beast, I really liked that movie. I thought Seagal looked a lot better than he did in The Foreigner and his stunt double was great. I loved the coreographing, especially the fight with the Thai General. Great fight. The Matrix effects really did look good, especially that sweet dive Seagal pulls out of the train while shooting. One stupid thing that got to me was the "warehouse massacre," When one of the ninja assasins is standing up all alone just twisting his sword while Seagal and Sunti are fighting the others below. It's actaully very funny. Look for it...

As for Into The Sun, I hear mixed reaction but mostly negative feedback. Of course, I just don't watch a movie once then make my decision, I plan on watching it again. I loved the cinematography, it was just the acting that was absolutley horrible. Although I did like the humor, like when Seagal's young partner has an AD (Accidental Discharge). But everything else seemed stupid and pointless. I mean after watching the first scene, I asked myself, "Who the hell would hire a man to take down the most lethal gang, when he risked his life, his partner's life, and the entire opperation to make sure that one girl didn't get molested..." But anyways, being the nice gentlemen I am, I was nice when I was rating Into the Sun, I gave it a 6/10...For Submerged...With the help of Vinny Jones I gave Submerged a 3.5/10...And I didn't enjoy giving that low score.

I wonder if Seagal realizes that he is going downhill. We should all form an alliance and march to Seagal's house and make sure our demands are met for the better of Seagal's career.

 

[Nick]

Mason I am glad to finally hear some sense about this whole issue.

I have been a fan of Steven’s since I was a child. But not for one second did I limit myself. I was also a fan of Van Damme and Jackie Chan. And later started to like more serious and intellectual actors and directors etc

But still many years later I still turn to my childhood heroes sort of speak. Van Damme under the guidance of Ringo Lam still impresses me. He has become an actor. Not the best of the kind but it’s a start. Steven on the other hand is a different story.

Most of the people of this board are in denial. They don’t want to face the truth. But I can just come out and say what is on my mind. Maybe it’s because I am a writer or perhaps that I am not at the bottom of his shoes. Either way the problem is his heart obviously isn’t in it. I watched Above the Law a night ago and that was a passionate film. It is a mindless for the most part B genre film. But it had heart. These latest offerings lack that and everything else. He seems to be doing these films mostly for the money. And like Mason frankly I don’t get enjoyment out of seeing Seagal talking for almost two hours. I am not a woman. The weight gain that increases and decreases worse than the weather here in Canada is another issue. When a self respecting martial artist lets himself go like this he doesn’t care. Make excuses for him I frankly don’t give a damn. Because in the end it’s true. I seen masterpieces crafted with lower budgets that he works with. What he needs to do is find a talented writer and give the fans what they hunger for. Even at his age he can perform action sequences that are longer than 16 seconds. He releases four films a year. He probably did about 3-4 action scenes per each film. And he thinks that’s fine. His upcoming film Today You Die(Because of the writer) and his HK Project(Because of Bey Logan) will either save him or will destroy him. He will still have fan’s of course. But he will have one less. I mean why should we give him our money? So he can keep releasing terrible films each year?

P.S I will rent Into the Sun and Submerged this weekend. So this post wasn’t pointless. Expect a Review soon.

 

[Sworn Enemy]

"Most of the people of this board are in denial. They don’t want to face the truth."


AMEN! I've been saying that for over a year now..ever since I discovered this site.

 

[Purplelotus1]

LOL ha ha ha LOL ! did you buy it

 

[hofmae]

Ok Guys and Girls.

Maybe i wasn't right with the dubbing. (Im sorry, i watch most Steven Seagal Flicks in German). But this movie isn't that bad. Maybe its not a "typical" steven Seagla Movie. But must every movie be the same, that you like Steven Seagal?

I like every movie where he's in. Some i like better and some not. And from the new movies, Submerged is defnitaly a better one for me!

 

[suziwong]

diiidddiiinnnnggggggggggggg !!!

Finally my "Submerged" DVD came and I will watch to night !!!!

I am sure I will like it because its Steven Seagal's movie !!!!

kehh..keh.. kehhh...

suzi

 

[hofmae]

Finally my "Submerged" DVD came and I will watch to night !!!!

I am sure I will like it because its Steven Seagal's movie !!!!

kehh..keh.. kehhh...

suzi

Hey Suzi,

it isn't that bad... ok... we have a lot of voice dubbing, but i liked the movie.

 

[suziwong]

Hey Suzi,

it isn't that bad... ok... we have a lot of voice dubbing, but i liked the movie.

gezzzz voice dubbing !!! I will watch Steven...

Thanks

suzi

 

[hofmae]

yes sure and you have a lot of Steven I liked it very much... Better than all movies since Exit Wounds (for me). Im waiting now for your review

 

[suziwong]

yes sure and you have a lot of Steven I liked it very much... Better than all movies since Exit Wounds (for me). Im waiting now for your review

coming soon !!!!!

 

[seagalfan128]

"Most of the people of this board are in denial. They don’t want to face the truth."


AMEN! I've been saying that for over a year now..ever since I discovered this site.

I agree with you. Imagine Seagal trying to re-make the scene from Above The Law / Nico (where he's holding onto the roof of the car driving at an intense speed) now...

 

[seagalfan128]

yes sure and you have a lot of Steven I liked it very much... Better than all movies since Exit Wounds (for me). Im waiting now for your review

How could you say that!?!? Lol This movie was worse than any early Keanu Reeves movie, or any Ashton Kutcher movie period! How and what did you like about Submerged. The fliming was so crappy, and unorganized! The only scene the camera focuses on is the final scene...Everything else is sucks...It's like this movie was made just to waste your time.

Exit Wounds was awesome. How dare you compare Submerged to Exit Wounds lol. Actually...how dare you compare Submerged to any other Seagal movie. But it's okay, you probably just forgot about Above the Law, Hard to Kill, Under Siege, Under Siege 2, Marked For Death, The Glimmer Man...Watch those then watch Submerged.

As a matter of fact...Submerged DVD should be used as a form of torture for the US Government at Guantanamo Bay lol.

 

[katw_03]

Seagal Fan

How could you say that!?!? Lol This movie was worse than any early Keanu Reeves movie, or any Ashton Kutcher movie period! How and what did you like about Submerged. The fliming was so crappy, and unorganized! The only scene the camera focuses on is the final scene...Everything else is sucks...It's like this movie was made just to waste your time.

Exit Wounds was awesome. How dare you compare Submerged to Exit Wounds lol. Actually...how dare you compare Submerged to any other Seagal movie. But it's okay, you probably just forgot about Above the Law, Hard to Kill, Under Siege, Under Siege 2, Marked For Death, The Glimmer Man...Watch those then watch Submerged.

As a matter of fact...Submerged DVD should be used as a form of torture for the US Government at Guantanamo Bay lol.

Simmer down a little SeagalFan, your gonna blow a gasket!
Btw, ANYWAY, how can you call yourself a fan of Steven Seagal?
I like him the way he is, he cannot look like Nico forever!

 

[hofmae]

Oh, i definately enjoyed it. I would watch this movie even without Steven Seagal. The story wasn't that bad!

 

[Administrator]

There was a time when Steven Seagal was B-A-A-D in a campy sort of way. Now he's just bad, and whoever convinced him to make "Submerged" should be severely chastised and held up to public ridicule. Like the film.

"Submerged" is so awful it's hard to know where to begin. You get the feeling that someone got the bright idea, Hey, let's set it in Uruguay, because not a whole lot of action-film lovers know a whole lot about that tiny South American country, and so they'll be more apt to believe this far-fetched plot involving mind control and a modern version of a Nazi mad doctor gleefully performing "research" operations. Oh, and submarines are cool! Let's get them on a submarine! That's about all you can glean from this muddled mess, which substitutes pointless action at every turn for anything resembling an well-reasoned plot. There's plenty of shooting and stabbing, but it's all so strobe-like that even the action can get pretty darned annoying—especially since we're not really sure what's going on.

Like Sean Connery's character in "The Rock," Chris Cody (Seagal) is sprung from the brig on the USS Clinton (okay all you people reading politics into "Star Wars 3," here's another chance to speculate) and promised a pardon if he'll go to Uruguay, where an American ambassador has been assassinated—by a U.S. insider. It's up to Commander Cody and his dirty baker's half-dozen to get to the bottom of things. There's Henry, a sniper (Vinnie Jones), Chief and Rollins, the small arms experts (P.H. Moriarty and Ulian Vergov), Luis, the navigator (Stephen Da Costa), O'Hearn, the dynamic entry expert (Adam Fogarty), Ender, the explosives guy (Raicho Vaslev), a medic, and a woman whose sent along by the government (Christine Adams). But none of the actors is given the chance to set themselves apart from the others, and so they're all really not much more than the equivalent of those plastic soldiers kids used to line up and knock down.

Even if you've been paying close attention, rather than squirming in your seat, using the bathroom, or fixing another snack, you still won't figure out exactly how the action shifted so quickly from a military-industrial complex to a submarine that terrorists have commandeered. All you can tell is that Cody and his bunch are shooting and stabbing everybody else on the screen.

Now, if the special effects or stunt work was spectacular, then "Submerged" might merit a star or two. But the sad fact is that nothing is believable—not even the way the fake blood is applied. And the submarine? The top of it looks like a patchwork quilt.

B-movie director Anthony Hickox ("Jill the Ripper") relies heavily on techniques that resemble skip-printing and stop-action photography during the action scenes, which, you can only guess, is intended to compensate for the lack of real special effects and believable fight sequences. Through it all, Seagal, the man of a single face, looks and acts as if he's on a subway commute. Even when the sub is blown up, his only reaction is, "Oh, man."

Other stellar lines? "That's why I get the big bucks," "I love working with a professional," and "I got a ****ty feeling about this one, man." But my absolute favorite is when the terminally Caucasian Cody tells someone, "You got 10 minutes to get your white ass out of here." O-kay.

"Submerged" offers nothing but cardboard characters, hokey dialogue, a patchwork plot, and contrived action sequences. It wouldn't be any less believable if Yoda and Condoleezza Rice had been teamed up to fight the evil doctor and his terrorist friends.

Video: Though this 2005 film is mastered in High Definition and presented in anamorphic widescreen (1.85:1 aspect ratio), there's actually more graininess and washed-out color than I would have expected. Admittedly it could be deliberate, but if so, it does nothing to enhance the film.

Audio: The sound is pretty decent. Though there's nothing on the box or press materials to indicate as much, and though there's not much rear speaker action, the soundtrack appears to be Dolby Digital 5.1.

Extras: There are none—just an insert advertising other titles and some previews. Are you kidding? Who would want to talk about this film after making it?

Bottom Line: If Steven Seagal started out as a wooden actor, in the twilight of his action career, with him looking haggard and tired, he's become absolutely petrified—a low-energy caricature of his earlier balsa performances. It was hard not to like him in "Hard to Kill" or "Under Siege," because there was plenty of character motivation and Seagal seemed to be full of energy. "Submerged" was first conceived as a stranded sub picture involving weird life forms, but even with the mutant plotline jettisoned, this one still sinks.

Video : 6 out 10
Audio : 7 out 10
Extras : 1 out 10
Film value : 1 out 10

Source : DVD Town.

Overall, not a very good review.

 

[suziwong]

Nowwww I am going to watch it and I'll back 90 minutes later..

byeeeeeeeeeeee

suzi

 

[Administrator]

The Movie: 8/10

The American Ambassador has been murdered in South America. The CIA are justifiably concerned, they believe the killing to be the handy-work of the twisted Dr.Lehder (Nick Brimble). In order for them to track down Lehder and some army boys he has captured, they have to turn to one man - you guessed it…..the mighty Steven Seagal.

Playing one of his patented ex-CIA/Military guys, Seagal plays Cody who has been in prison as a scapegoat for the American government, he is offered a full pardon if he can locate Lehder and retrieve the data for his sick brainwashing experiments. Seagal puts together his old team of varied ex-soldiers (who are also in prison) for one last mission to finish off Lehder. Among his team are British veteran actor, PH (The Long Good Friday) Moriaty, Vinnie (Snatch) Jones and a beautiful operative, Damita played by the gorgeous Alison (Sky’s Dream Team) King. Tracking down Lehder’s lair, they miss him literally by minutes and rescue the soldiers. They then make their escape on an old submarine, but as the soldiers have been brainwashed it is only a matter of time before they turn on their rescuers.
Director, Anthony (Hellraiser 3, Waxwork) Hickox has crafted a great action movie packed with non-stop shooting and fighting. There is plenty of violence especially from a certain Mr Jones playing his usual cockney thug role. Although you have seen it all before, no one swears like our Vinnie and he brings some light relief to the proceedings. Seagal is his usual quiet self, kicking ass when he has to and generally being himself (a good thing always in my book). Alison King however is a somewhat of a revelation. Known for her role in football drama, Dream Team and starring in soap adverts, she shows a different side to her as operative, Damita. She looks good and carries off some action pretty well. Someone give this lady another action film and see what she can do!!

This is the best film from Seagal in a long time. His direct to DVD efforts have somewhat been strained especially The Foreigner (which was awful) if the budget was a bit bigger and it had a few more ‘names’ I could see no reason why this couldn’t get a cinema release. What you do have is one of the best B action films in a long time!! Welcome back Steven Seagal you’re making great films again.

Picture: 7/10

A clear well defined picture is on offer here. Shot in Bulgaria (doubling for South America) Submerged is a varied production, locations wise. The countryside and city scenes are bright, colourful and show no kind of bleeding or smearing. The dark submarine scenes are very dark (as you would expect) which at times is annoying as the action is a bit hard to follow. This I would say is down to the filming not the DVD as the darks are deep and show not one sign of artefacts. The only downside to the picture is a couple of the CGI explosions it looks a little pixilated, but that is down to the cheap-ish effects. Please note that a couple of dodgy CGI effects does not spoil what is a fun movie.

Sound: 8/10

An excellent soundtrack with plenty of separation between the channels, especially on the submarine scenes and when any action comes into play (which is a lot). Dialogue mainly comes from the centre channel and is clear. One problem seems to be during post-production some of Seagal’s lines (I maybe wrong) seemed to have been re-dubbed by another actor. This is at times a little annoying. Mind you, with plenty of explosions and gunfire you soon forget about it.

Like I said above, this is an effective soundtrack, during the underwater scenes, the surrounds don’t get a rest with plenty of creaking and moaning switching from speaker to speaker. For a low-ish budget film (I believe it was around a $15 million budget) the sound is of a standard you would expect from a Jerry (Bad Boys, Con Air, The Rock) Bruckheimer production.

Extras: 1/10

Just a few trailers of other Sony releases including the new horror films, The Cave and Devour.

Verdict: 8/10

Submerged is Seagal’s best film since Under Siege 2. Into the Sun (his previous film) was a step in the right direction. The film is packed with action from beginning to end. Although it’s not going to win awards for it’s acting, it has a reasonable script, very good production values and most of all lots of gratuitous violence from Seagal and Vinnie Jones. Certainly one for the action film collection.

Source : AV Forums. Review by Craig Snell.

Well a better review.

 

[hofmae]

yes!!! thats what i mean too. For me its not the Best Movie since Under Siege 2. But its very cool!

 

[suziwong]

8/10

I can not say it is better than Under Siege nor Exit Wounds (those are amazing Steven Seagal's character movies but this is not) but it is very nice Action movie.. Also I can not say one of the best Steven Seagal movie but it's OK for me. I liked....

Plot: That's good and different...
picture, sounds,musics,lights: it is very good..

I didn't see any mistakes about visual effects..

I liked Vinnie Jones he was very cool..

STEVEN SEAGAL:

yes he is not very active but very very cool...

Seagal's voice: can be dubbed but not bad...

Seagal Stund Dubble:Actually I want to see him every scenes but in this movie stund dubble didn't disturb me too much.. its Ok !!

Steven Seagal costumes, make-up:
leather trenchcot and green shirt: he weared these in Out For A Kill..
Opera costume and red shirt really very good and I liked.. He was very handsome with opera costume.. [except again his hair ]

Steven's fight scenes: yes two fight scenes but was excellent both of them.. may be you think its a few fight scenes but not important if you think totally in the movie.. He is not just an fighter he is an actor too..
I liked..
Driving BMV scenes.. yes I liked..he was very cool...

Finally:
Yes I can not say fantastic but really I liked. it is very good..
Especially if you think, OFAK, TF... it is really excellent..

I liked Submerged and Seagal's Chris Cody character..
and my point: 8/10 ... or.... 3.88/5

...and now I can go to sleep..
You have a nice day/good night ...

suzi