Sanctum

As a dramatic thriller, Sanctum sets up at the starting line with an intriguing location (The Esa-ala Caves of Papua, New Guinea - one of the biggest cave systems on the planet) and a workable premise (a storm comes along, and traps a small group of explorers within them as the caves slowly fill with water). Afterward, it stumbles and falls flat on its face with idiotic characters we couldn't possibly care about, wooden dialogue, and an overall lack of suspense that makes it impossible to get involved.

Though "inspired by a true story" and an event that actually happened to the film's co-writer, Andrew Wright, you can tell while watching that much of what's up on the screen is pure baloney, as no one in this movie talks like anyone in this situation would. (Get ready for lines like, "Panic is the vulture that sits on your shoulder".) The characters are paper-thin, and exist usually for one solitary purpose that you pick up on long before it's revealed. How else can you explain why Carl (Ioan Gruffudd), the wealthy millionaire who is financing the exploration of the caves, would bring his girlfriend Victoria (Alice Parkinson) down into the caves when she has absolutely no experience with caves? He brings her down there solely because the movie needs a female character trapped down there with the men. She's also down there to make incredibly stupid decisions, which she will do over and over again by not listening to the smarter characters surrounding her, until...Well, you'll see.

The leader of the trapped explorers is Frank (Richard Roxburgh), a gruff and grizzled veteran cave explorer who kind of comes across as a surlier and foul mouthed Crocodile Dundee. His purpose in the film is to guide the team, only to have no one listen to him, so the screenplay can get rid of the unnecessary minority and secondary characters trapped in the cave, so that only the main characters are left alive. He's also there as the supposed heart of the movie. You see, Frank has a estranged teenage son named Josh (Rhys Wakefield), who's not too happy about being down in the caves with his father. They never saw eye-to-eye. Being trapped together gives the characters plenty of time for father-son bonding, and for Frank to say lines like, "I know I was never much of a father to you". The bonding is, like everything else in this film, forced and contrived. It constantly feels like the mechanical manipulations of a screenplay, rather than human emotion.

But then, I didn't find myself caring much for anyone in Sanctum. Many aren't around long enough for us to get a grasp of their character, and if they are, we're just not interested. This isn't even that good looking of a movie. After some beautiful establishing shots of the surrounding areas and the mystery of first entering the cave, everything goes downhill. The caves themselves never become a setting we can get lost in, because the movie never really establishes them. They're just a series of endless dark tunnels, as we watch the actors trudge on, reciting the scripts tin-eared dialogue. We don't really learn anything about the caves themselves. There's no intrigue or suspense created by the surroundings. Everything blends together to the point that we find ourselves wishing for daylight along with the characters - Specifically, the daylight that's waiting right outside the cinema door.

The film's two big selling points is that it is a James Cameron production (Even though he only executive produced it, the ad campaign and posters still proudly boast "From the creator of Avatar".), and that it makes use of his revolutionary 3D camera that he made famous in his earlier film. However, the 3D is a wash here. Think about it. A majority of the film takes place in dark caves with very little lighting. Now imagine that you're watching those scenes in a dark room wearing those dark 3D glasses. Some scenes manage a sense of depth that is impressive, but these are seldom. Most of the time, there's no need for the 3D in the first place. With so little to impress, we're left to focus on the awful dialogue and the mediocre performances.

Sanctum plays like a huge missed opportunity. Here is a movie that promises mystery and adventure, and ends up giving us little. With the James Cameron name attached, people might be expecting something grand and epic. What a cheat that all they get are a soggy father and son rediscovering their feelings for each other. Long before it was over, I was hoping those creatures from The Descent would show up to attack our heroes. I know, it'd be hard to swallow, this being based on a true story. But hey, something tells me reality flew out the window a long time ago.

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