Hope ain't a tactic

Rating: 10/10 (18 September 2017)

This is a dramatization of the events surrounding the explosion and BP spill of the Deepwater Horizon floating platform located 41 miles off the coast of Louisiana. The film centers around Mike Williams (Mark Wahlberg) the Chief Electronics Technician (according to his hard hat but he was an engineer) of the crew and to a lesser extended through Andrea Fleytas (Gina Rodriguez) an operator. The operation of the drilling is explained early in the film by Mike's daughter using a coke can and honey for a school project. Ominously the coke sprays out the top.
We see Mike struggle to maintain a safe ship against the pressure of schedule and profits as they drill "the well from hell." He says, "Every time I peel off a band-aid I find three or four more. " He butts head with John Malkovich who had the honor of playing BP engineer and representative Don Vidrine, the film's bad guy. He helps explains things to Don by comparing safety to noodling.
The special effects were pretty intense. Like so many major accidents, people want to deny they are happening until too late. The irony is that this unsafe rig was getting a safety award for being BP's safest rig. I shudder to think.
In the end, the film has a brief tribute to those who lost their lives for oil and profits.
Guide: 1 F-word. No sex or nudity.