Deepwater Horizon is directed by Peter Berg, one of the most underrated filmmakers in the industry today. He’s been known for his neatly-directed action films like The Rundown with Dwayne Johnson and Hancock with Will Smith, however, he’s been recognized for making the loathsome shipwreck Battleship. But fortunately, after he made Battleship, he bounced back with Lone Survivor, which in my opinion was one of the best films of 2014. Now, Berg has returned once more with Deepwater Horizon, a movie that focuses on the worst oil rig disaster in history that took place on the Gulf Coast on April 20th, 2010. The film tells the story of how Mike Williams played once again by Mark Wahlberg and the rest of his crewmembers try to survive the outright catastrophic destruction that occurred on the Deepwater Horizon.

Berg creates his cinematic renditions of historical events with great attention to detail and accuracy. This movie is both an intense, non-stop thrill-ride and a gritty, realistic depiction of the disaster on the Deepwater Horizon. Everything in the film is done with efficient delicacy and is handled perfectly the whole way through; not once does this movie have moments where it becomes too theatrical or mindless like your typical bombastic action thriller.

Now, while I do admit that the first act does take a little while to get to the beginning of the disaster, the film effectively utilizes that time to develop the oil rig workers and technicians as well as thought out characters. Throughout the film, the audience is given opportunities to form emotional attachments to these characters, mainly through their heartfelt interactions with each other. Wahlberg’s performance as Mike Williams is incredible, not only because of  his charisma, but but also because of how convincing he is as his character. The thought-provoking screenplay develops him as an relatable character, which makes us root for him from beginning to end. Actors including Kurt Russell, Dylan O’Brien, and John Malkovich, also perform well in this film.

This film really showcases its numerous strengths in its pristine visual effects and sound design. The hellish, fiery explosion of the Deepwater Horizon not only acts as a visually striking thing of sheer beauty, but for me, it also adds a bit of realism to the film and applied tension and fear to emphasize the immensity of the situation without being excessive. So when you are watching the chaos unfold, you are thoroughly astounded by how anyone survived the overwhelming destruction the Deepwater Horizon. Everything from the catastrophic combustion to the structures of the oil rig collapsing to the oil pipes blowing apart during the disaster feels raw, impactful, and outright satisfying.

The film also highlights the tendency of humans to accuse others. Usually, when a chaotic event like this happens, we point fingers at others. In Deepwater Horizon, we have no idea what the details were or the situation that went down on the Horizon, and I truly feel it is one of those themes that citizens and moviegoers never really see nowadays.

Deepwater Horizon is a film with terrific acting, beautiful effects, and impactful sound design, that addresses an issue that is prevalent today. Deepwater Horizon is more than just a standard action thriller; it’s a truly, terrifyingly intense film that needs to be appreciated for its masterful composition.