Today's title might have been how the pitch meeting for this movie went. Especially since the director was Ron Howard.
Indeed, like "Apollo 11," this film was based on actual events from 2018. A kids soccer team and their coach venture into a deep dark cave just as the monsoon season in Thailand hits. They are trapped and their location is six hours away from the entrance with the entire route under water. Resourceful British Navy Seals devise a method to escort the twelve kids and their course out, one by one, by sedating them for the six-hour swim.
And, like "Apollo 11." things get tense but there is a happy ending. Ron's way to manage that level of suspense with the astronauts was masterful and it might have been his best movie ever. I mean, we all knew they would be safe but, still, we were on the edge of our seats.
Much less so with "Thirteen Lives" and there are a few reasons for that. The primary problem with this film is that so much of the footage is under water with a murky quality that sometimes prevents you from understanding what exactly is going on. At times, it seems like you are binge watching several seasons of "Sea Hunt" with Lloyd Bridges.
The other challenge with "Thirteen Lives" is that, in comparison to the well known characters of "Apollo 11," you don't know who any of these people are. Neither the Seals or the soccer kids. Whereas in "Apollo 11," you got the stylings of Tom Hanks, Kevin Bacon, and Ed Harris, the folks offered to you by "Thirteen Lives" are heroic but a bit less interesting. Might I say dull?
The length of "Thirteen Lives" is also an issue. Coming in at two hours and thirty minutes, you feel it drag frequently especially given you already know the outcome. Now I'm a big fan of Ron Howard but it's hard for me to fathom that these two films were made by the same guy.
I wish I couldn't have liked it more, but I didn't. At least, the kids are safe and sound.
LEN'S RATING: Two-and-a-half stars.
Dinner last night: Hamburger and French fries.
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