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Editorial Reviews
When a tropical storm forces an offshore drilling company to evacuate non-essential personnel from the ''Charlie'' oil rig, the small but experienced crew left behind settles in to ride out the storm. Isolated on the rig, their routine night is interrupted when a crew member goes missing and an extensive search proves futile. Slowly, they discover that a deadly creature is stalking the crew, eliminating them one by one. Surrounded by nothing but raging ocean with no hope of escape, the roughnecks must survive the stormy night with an unrelenting force of death hunting them down.
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
17 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
I was really hoping to enjoy THE RIG (2010). I love monster-on-the-loose flicks, and this one looked to be so simple and straightforward a set-up that I couldn't imagine how anyone could screw it up.
I seriously underestimated director Peter Atencio.
Here's the plot: most of the crew of a deep-sea oil-drilling platform are evacuated ahead of an approaching hurricane, leaving only a skeleton crew aboard, led by hardcase roughneck Jim (veteran heavy William Forsythe, G-MEN FROM HELL). Unfortunately, several bloodthirsty, inhuman creatures have been released from beneath the ocean floor by the drill, and the vicious monsters stalk the isolated, unarmed crew, killing them off one-by-one...
Shot on a real oil platform, THE RIG definitely benefits from the authentic location and the verisimilitude it provides. Forsythe is as good as usual, and familiar character actor Art LeFleur (TRANCERS, ZONE TROOPERS) also shines in his small role. The creatures are quite good, executed primarily through the use of performers in well-designed monster suits and other practical effects, with only a limited use of CGI. There are some decent gore make-ups and a bit of gratuitous boobage. All good.
But - top-billed Forsythe is barely in the picture. Worse, the direction (and editing) by Peter Atencio is leaden and utterly suspense-less, and he is poorly served by the amateurish acting of the bulk of the cast. The script is stupidly plotted and packed with banal dialogue (not that a logical script with snappy patter is vital for a B-monster movie, but it sure helps) and the movie's pace is sluggish, padded with unnecessary and obvious time fillers like endless shots of empty corridors, gratuitous slow-motion and pointless, black & white flashbacks to events that occurred only minutes before (and repeated again, later in the film!). Even the "fade to black" scene transitions are insanely slow and drawn-out.
The movie doesn't even end on a high note - instead, we get a protracted, ludicrous epilogue that actually drags the viewer's attention away from the only character we've come to care even slightly about, to instead resolve a soap opera subplot for a minor character who's barely in the film.
And, while I'm bitching - if your plot hinges, in part, on a menacing hurricane, it'd be nice if you actually attempted to portray one in your movie. Apparently, in the world of the film, a slight fog is enough to cause evacuations from oil rigs; all we ever see of this terrible storm is a couple of digital lightning flashes and an equally artificial mist. Some crashing waves, strong winds and torrential rain (not to mention the sound effects associated with same) might have actually added some pretense of danger to the situation. I guess it just cost too much to rent and haul some wind machines and fire hoses out to the location.
Anchor Bay's DVD is perfectly adequate, with a sharp (the movie was obviously shot on HD video) 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer and Digital 5.1 audio. There's a commentary track by Atencio and producer James D. Benson, some behind-the-scenes footage, and a trailer.
As I said, I thought the creatures were pretty well done, but not so remarkable that I can bring myself recommend THE RIG, even to die-hard B-monster movie aficionados. Unlike a lot of bad creature features that can still be entertaining because they're so off-the-wall or the monsters so endearingly goofy, THE RIG is just dull and incompetent... so I expect you'll be seeing it on SyFy any day now.
I seriously underestimated director Peter Atencio.
Here's the plot: most of the crew of a deep-sea oil-drilling platform are evacuated ahead of an approaching hurricane, leaving only a skeleton crew aboard, led by hardcase roughneck Jim (veteran heavy William Forsythe, G-MEN FROM HELL). Unfortunately, several bloodthirsty, inhuman creatures have been released from beneath the ocean floor by the drill, and the vicious monsters stalk the isolated, unarmed crew, killing them off one-by-one...
Shot on a real oil platform, THE RIG definitely benefits from the authentic location and the verisimilitude it provides. Forsythe is as good as usual, and familiar character actor Art LeFleur (TRANCERS, ZONE TROOPERS) also shines in his small role. The creatures are quite good, executed primarily through the use of performers in well-designed monster suits and other practical effects, with only a limited use of CGI. There are some decent gore make-ups and a bit of gratuitous boobage. All good.
But - top-billed Forsythe is barely in the picture. Worse, the direction (and editing) by Peter Atencio is leaden and utterly suspense-less, and he is poorly served by the amateurish acting of the bulk of the cast. The script is stupidly plotted and packed with banal dialogue (not that a logical script with snappy patter is vital for a B-monster movie, but it sure helps) and the movie's pace is sluggish, padded with unnecessary and obvious time fillers like endless shots of empty corridors, gratuitous slow-motion and pointless, black & white flashbacks to events that occurred only minutes before (and repeated again, later in the film!). Even the "fade to black" scene transitions are insanely slow and drawn-out.
The movie doesn't even end on a high note - instead, we get a protracted, ludicrous epilogue that actually drags the viewer's attention away from the only character we've come to care even slightly about, to instead resolve a soap opera subplot for a minor character who's barely in the film.
And, while I'm bitching - if your plot hinges, in part, on a menacing hurricane, it'd be nice if you actually attempted to portray one in your movie. Apparently, in the world of the film, a slight fog is enough to cause evacuations from oil rigs; all we ever see of this terrible storm is a couple of digital lightning flashes and an equally artificial mist. Some crashing waves, strong winds and torrential rain (not to mention the sound effects associated with same) might have actually added some pretense of danger to the situation. I guess it just cost too much to rent and haul some wind machines and fire hoses out to the location.
Anchor Bay's DVD is perfectly adequate, with a sharp (the movie was obviously shot on HD video) 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer and Digital 5.1 audio. There's a commentary track by Atencio and producer James D. Benson, some behind-the-scenes footage, and a trailer.
As I said, I thought the creatures were pretty well done, but not so remarkable that I can bring myself recommend THE RIG, even to die-hard B-monster movie aficionados. Unlike a lot of bad creature features that can still be entertaining because they're so off-the-wall or the monsters so endearingly goofy, THE RIG is just dull and incompetent... so I expect you'll be seeing it on SyFy any day now.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By Kenneth Sohl
Format:DVD
Actually, let me say up front that this flick is more like 3 stars if that, but when I feel a movie is unjustly dumped on, I like to give it a helping hand. Having previously read the reviews here I passed it up, but, while browsing a used DVD store, I came across it and figured it'd be worth $4. Now, I suppose this is the part where I say, "boy, and am I glad I did!" but, honestly, it wasn't that good. However, it wasn't as bad as some reviewers here make it out to be. Upon finishing this movie, I suspected some sort of agenda-mongering by some of the reviewers here, but upon revisiting this page, I think the truth is that many of these people are simply jaded.
First, the cast is pretty decent. Contrary to what some have said here, they all performed quite well. The characters were likeable (unlike in some films) and the actors made you care about them (at least, should you make a modicum of an attempt to suspend disbelief in a film about rampaging sea-monsters). Many were unknowns, but that didn't make them "amateurish". I guess there's an element out there that figures if they aren't "name" actors, they must not be good. The entire cast did a good job being half-way convincing as oil-rig workers. The script simply didn't call for a whole lot of deep characterization, and this film didn't need it. In fact, what little drama there was seemed like excess baggage.
Second, the directing was competent for something like this. Nothing remotely stylish, but adequate. Decent editing. Cinematography was really nice at times, with lighting low enough to be moody, but still light enough to see the action. Also, the lighting seemed very realistic throughout most of the film, usually seeming like flourescents in a hallway or arc-lighting on the deck, no beautiful "artsy" lighting as in some movies. An instance or two of the shaky, hand-held camera so popular today, but not enough to be distracting.
Third, this was obviously filmed on a real oil-rig, so I don't know what movie the people complaining about the sets watched. Nothing more to say on that.
Finally, the Monster. Pretty decent man-in-a-suit, think "Humanoids from the Deep" here with an "Alien" make-over. I know that there is a clue-less strata of movie-goer out there that thinks that CGI, no matter how badly done, must trump the traditional methods, no matter how well done. Suffice to say, they are dead wrong.
Now, for the problems.
First, one of the reasons I wanted to see this was because I like William Forsythe, and, to be sure, he had a good role. Unfortunately, he just wasn't seen that much. Clearly, they had managed to land a "name" draw, but were unable to pay him for the duration.
Second, the directing and/or the script. Like I had noted previously, the directing was competent, but in order to create suspense, you have to do better than that. Too many derivitave scenes here, one lifted directly from the original "Alien". Yes, I know that these sort of things are expected of flicks like these. That cuts no mustard with me when you obviously have the components to make something better.
Lastly, the Monster. Yes, I know I said that it was pretty decent above, and it was, for a Man-in-a-suit. My problem with it is this: Why would something anthropomorphic come up from the bottom of the ocean? I mean, it should be like an eel, or giant lung-fish, or crab, or a squid-thingy, but human? I realize they never explained exactly what it was, and there lies my second problem with it. Not that everything has to be rationalized, but if you aren't going to do that, then at least make the creature something that one can truly believe might come out of the sea.
Now, it is possible that, after reading all the negatives here, my expectations were lowered so that I was pleasantly surprised by it (you see, I'm yet another jaded film-goer). I guess the main problem with this movie is that it isn't good enough to cover new territory and it isn't bad enough to be funny, setting it squarely in the middle as a rather pedestrian viewing experience. But, if it had been a made-for-TV film, most would have considered it one of the better ones. It surely blows away most "made-for-SyFy" features. In fact, in terms of watchability, think of it on a level with some of the lesser Stephen King adaptations for television.
In closing, I have to say that the only real fault with this movie, albeit a major one, is that, though not bad on its own, we've all seen it done before and done better with "Leviathan" and "Deep Rising". Only recommended for genre fans, but, if you truly are a B-movie creature-phile, you'll watch it regardless of the carping (get it? Carping...sea monsters, heheh) it will elicit. Go on, you know you want to.
First, the cast is pretty decent. Contrary to what some have said here, they all performed quite well. The characters were likeable (unlike in some films) and the actors made you care about them (at least, should you make a modicum of an attempt to suspend disbelief in a film about rampaging sea-monsters). Many were unknowns, but that didn't make them "amateurish". I guess there's an element out there that figures if they aren't "name" actors, they must not be good. The entire cast did a good job being half-way convincing as oil-rig workers. The script simply didn't call for a whole lot of deep characterization, and this film didn't need it. In fact, what little drama there was seemed like excess baggage.
Second, the directing was competent for something like this. Nothing remotely stylish, but adequate. Decent editing. Cinematography was really nice at times, with lighting low enough to be moody, but still light enough to see the action. Also, the lighting seemed very realistic throughout most of the film, usually seeming like flourescents in a hallway or arc-lighting on the deck, no beautiful "artsy" lighting as in some movies. An instance or two of the shaky, hand-held camera so popular today, but not enough to be distracting.
Third, this was obviously filmed on a real oil-rig, so I don't know what movie the people complaining about the sets watched. Nothing more to say on that.
Finally, the Monster. Pretty decent man-in-a-suit, think "Humanoids from the Deep" here with an "Alien" make-over. I know that there is a clue-less strata of movie-goer out there that thinks that CGI, no matter how badly done, must trump the traditional methods, no matter how well done. Suffice to say, they are dead wrong.
Now, for the problems.
First, one of the reasons I wanted to see this was because I like William Forsythe, and, to be sure, he had a good role. Unfortunately, he just wasn't seen that much. Clearly, they had managed to land a "name" draw, but were unable to pay him for the duration.
Second, the directing and/or the script. Like I had noted previously, the directing was competent, but in order to create suspense, you have to do better than that. Too many derivitave scenes here, one lifted directly from the original "Alien". Yes, I know that these sort of things are expected of flicks like these. That cuts no mustard with me when you obviously have the components to make something better.
Lastly, the Monster. Yes, I know I said that it was pretty decent above, and it was, for a Man-in-a-suit. My problem with it is this: Why would something anthropomorphic come up from the bottom of the ocean? I mean, it should be like an eel, or giant lung-fish, or crab, or a squid-thingy, but human? I realize they never explained exactly what it was, and there lies my second problem with it. Not that everything has to be rationalized, but if you aren't going to do that, then at least make the creature something that one can truly believe might come out of the sea.
Now, it is possible that, after reading all the negatives here, my expectations were lowered so that I was pleasantly surprised by it (you see, I'm yet another jaded film-goer). I guess the main problem with this movie is that it isn't good enough to cover new territory and it isn't bad enough to be funny, setting it squarely in the middle as a rather pedestrian viewing experience. But, if it had been a made-for-TV film, most would have considered it one of the better ones. It surely blows away most "made-for-SyFy" features. In fact, in terms of watchability, think of it on a level with some of the lesser Stephen King adaptations for television.
In closing, I have to say that the only real fault with this movie, albeit a major one, is that, though not bad on its own, we've all seen it done before and done better with "Leviathan" and "Deep Rising". Only recommended for genre fans, but, if you truly are a B-movie creature-phile, you'll watch it regardless of the carping (get it? Carping...sea monsters, heheh) it will elicit. Go on, you know you want to.
12 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
don't let the cover or text sway you into thinking this is a neat monster/horror film. its not. its a very low budget attempt at horror directed by someone with no imagination on how to stretch the budget for max effect. most of the film takes places in the inside of what we're led to believe is a rig, but looks more like a high school attempt at creating a haunted house. the few outside scenes are purposely poorly lit and funkily shot to camouflage another pitiful attempt at creating a realistic set. the story, however, is the worst part. its generally non-existent, and a completely random excursion through meaningless dribble. and there's a few actors you'll recognize, but it'l take a while because you haven't seen any of them for 10+ years...for a reason. very disappointed.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fun movie!
This movie was just a blast! Fun alien/creature action. Surprisingly good newer horror movie. I just mainly did this review to give it 5 stars since most of the people reviewing... Read more
Published 11 months ago by gooniemcfly
1.0 out of 5 stars
This is a low budget (B) movie similar to Sci-fi channel garbage!
I reviewed this movie on February 2, 2012. The Idea and concept would make a brilliant sea monster movie, if made correctly, with a big budget production and CGI, to include, a... Read more
Published 15 months ago by Sam's-Review
2.0 out of 5 stars
a neat way to get a leading role...
Set on an ocean oil rig during a storm, The Rig (2010) features a vicious undersea creature prowling through structure, slicing and dicing the crew. Read more
Published 17 months ago by trebe
1.0 out of 5 stars
I like bad movies, but, this was an exercise in shear will to finish...
When I sat down to watch this I knew it wasn't going to be getting high art. I was fine with that. I just figured it'd be a fun, cheesy, people tripped in a bad situation at sea... Read more
Published 18 months ago by Spider Jerusalem
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Rig
I had a good experience with this purchase , It came in a timely manner and the quality was good .Thanks again Bill
Published 20 months ago by Scattman
1.0 out of 5 stars
Bad lighting, dulled color, and bad script
The Rig is a really dull horror movie. The photography sucks. The color has been dulled down or tinted greenish. The lighting often fails to illuminate the actors' faces. Read more
Published 21 months ago by jimjimjim
5.0 out of 5 stars
Pretty good!
Pretty good movie! I enjoyed it! And yes Robert Zachar does a great job!!I love horror movies!!!!
Gena Habs
Gena Habs
Published on May 16, 2011 by Dayna
3.0 out of 5 stars
SLEESTAKS ON THE LOOSE!
THIS POOR MOVIE HAS TWO THINGS GOING FOR IT. THE CREATURE SUITS, AND THE SHOWER SCENE.The rest is pretty forgetable. Read more
Published on March 28, 2011 by Marvin Jenkins
3.0 out of 5 stars
RIGOR MORTS
THE RIG is not a horrible movie but it's not destined to be a classic either. Set on an oil rig during a rather mild hurricane, the movie has its reasonable amount of thrills but... Read more
Published on January 13, 2011 by Michael Butts
1.0 out of 5 stars
Don't look at the cover..it's a bad..bad movie
It's a real cheap movie, with bad actors set. The ''Weyland'' Rig corp..or whatever it's called was simply ripped off AvP movies. Read more
Published on December 23, 2010 by Dikkson Fokkerson
