Jude Law as a disgruntled submarine captain, who has been fired unjustly by a corporation and lost his beloved family tragically, is terrific in Black Sea. A good film. A must-see if you are a Jude Law fan.
The plot is simple, but the execution is masterful. A shady corporate 'suit' convinces Jude Law to take an old submarine to the Black Sea in search of an ancient submarine buried at the bottom of the ocean with gold bars from Nazi days and their WWII hidden treasures.
Law gathers together a crew of nine misfits who are told then can split the treasure evenly. Soon they realize that their shares will be bigger per man if the crew is smaller and murder ensues. Black Sea is reminiscent of Lillian Hellman's Ten Little Indians. The pace is gripping due to the Oscar-winning direction of Kevin Macdonald. And the cinematography keeps you on the edge of your popcorn as does the soundtrack. My neighbors shoulder was a bit sore when we left from my banging up against her from all those frightening moments. Gripping. This film is a thriller and then some. While one of the crew members says, "I'm claustrophobic," that feeling was not experienced in the viewing of the spectacular cowboys at sea film -- cowboys in a sense that these characters are each unique, unknown actors and yet charming in a raw, survival-of-the- fittest genre. Some parts of the dialogue are humorous such as the line that one of the seamen mutters when looking at an old submarine for hire: "Don't knock the old whores. They know more than the young'ns."
Scoot Mcnairy and Ben Mendelsohn are impressive, but then the entire cast is. If you want to forget the humdrum events in your life and want to escape into the mystery of the Black Sea, this film is for you. Ultimately Black Sea is about altruism at sea... Altruism anywhere is a refreshing message. So you won't be disappointed as our hero thinks about the other guys.
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