The Deep
Tags: insanity, historical fiction

Plot synopsis:
While scuba-diving near shipwrecks off Bermuda, vacationing couple David Sanders (Nick Nolte) and his British girlfriend Gail Berke (Jacqueline Bisset) recover a number of artifacts, including an ampule of amber-colored liquid and a medallion bearing the image of a woman and the letters "O.P.N.S.C" (meaning Ora pro nobis, Santa Clara) and a date, 1714.Sanders and Berke seek the advice of lighthouse-keeper and treasure-hunter Romer Treece (Robert Shaw) on the origin of the medallion, who identifies the item as Spanish and takes an interest in the young couple. The ampule is noticed by the man who had rented diving equipment to Sanders and Berke, which in turn attracts the attention of Henri Cloche (Louis Gossett, Jr), a local drug kingpin for whom the shop owner works, who wants to buy the ampule with no luck and then begins to terrorize the couple with Haitian black magic.Upon further examination by Treece, the ampule contains medicinal morphine from the Goliath, a ship that sank during World War II with a cargo of munitions and medical supplies. The wreck of the Goliath is considered dangerous and is posted as off-limits to divers due to the danger of explosions. Treece concludes that a recent storm has exposed her cargo of morphine and unearthed a much older wreck containing Spanish treasure.Treece makes a deal with Cloche, so they can dive in peace making him believe he will get the ampules for a million dollars, while his real plan is to have the chance to find the treasure. Cloche gives him three days to recover them.Over the next two days, Sanders, Berke, and Treece make several dives to the wrecks, recovering thousands of morphine ampules from Goliath and several additional artifacts from the Spanish wreck. Adam Coffin (Eli Wallach), the only survivor from Goliath, joins to help in the boat but his loyalty is not very clear when they get attacked by sharks and he only says "that he probably fell asleep" without noticing they were in trouble.Through research in Treece's library, they reconstruct the history of the lost treasure ship, locate a list of valuable items, including a metallic jar with the letters "EF" engraved on it, and learn the identity of the noblewoman (Isabella Farnese) for whom they were made by the king of Spain. Sanders is determined to locate at least one item on the list to establish provenance; since without it there is no value to the treasure. Treece wishes to destroy the Goliath to put the morphine out of reach of Cloche; and Cloche interferes with their efforts so that he can recover the morphine for himself.During a running series of conflicts Treece's friend Kevin (Robert Tessier) is murdered by one of Cloche's henchmen and Adam, betrays them and is killed when he triggers a booby-trap while trying to steal the recovered morphine. A climactic battle during the final dive ensues, with Cloche and his divers being killed by a large morey eel residing in the wreck. The conflict also results in the destruction of the Goliath when its explosive cargo is detonated. Neverless, Sanders, Berke, and Treece survive and recover a gold dragon necklace that will provide the needed provenance of the treasure.

Review: When David Sanders(well played by newcomer Nick Nolte) is on Holiday with his lover(the ALWAYS beautiful and aesthetic Jacqueline Bisset, of whom the film rests well on) Gail Berke, the two uncover items while diving: a small bottle of some sort, sufficient with morphine, and an unrecognizable piece of jewelry, worn by sea and time.
Genuinely frightening, and appropriately paced, this film not only relies on the situation to keep interest, but psychological undertones to further tell the story.One of the biggest things this film has going is the underwater photography, shot with beautiful landscapes of coral, fish, and dedication to what the actors explorations achieve.
The main three do their best to help with the psychological undertones of the film, part of the real charm.'The Deep' is more than just a deep sea adventure, but a psychological study of three human beings: One, an adventurous, intrepid young man, fascinated by what is dangerous and unknown to him; The other, his lover, a woman of strong passion, strength, and beauty on the inside and out, who is drawn to those she cannot access or comprehend; The third, a man who has been to hell and back, who still feels obliged to his place of comfort, the ocean.
And there are of course the bonuses of the legendary Robert Shaw, the unforgettable beauty of Jacqueline Bisset, a young Nick Nolte full of promise, a wonderful score by John Barry, and plenty of evocative scenery, both below and above sea level..
Peter Yates directed this beautiful escape from reality adventure in which our protagonists Nick Nolte and Jacqueline Bissete team up with the silver screen legend Robert Shaw to find a sunken treasure off the beaches of Bermuda.
I think that anyone who likes islands, adventure, scuba diving for gold, and beautiful woman will enjoy this movie..
As a 13 year old boy, I can assure you that she made a pretty indelible impression on me.4) The great supporting turns from Eli Wallach and Lou Gossett, Jr.I could go on but suffice it to say that watching this movie from time to time is sorta like taking a warm bath in the dead of winter.
The theme made it to the radio top hits in 1977 For me, the music makes this movie, together with the three main stars including Shaw, Nolte and the beautiful Jacqueline Bisset.
Fans of Robert Shaw, Louis Gossett, Jr. and Eli Wallach will be pleased to see them on screen, but less than satisfied with their weak parts.When first released, the scenery above and below the water in "The Deep" proved to be amazing.
Accompanied by multiple tropical fish, Ms. Bisset's underwater scenes are just as satisfying.My recollections of seeing "The Deep" for the first time in the theater, include sitting in the front row with head bent backwards, watching oversize tropical fish swimming back and forth across the screen.
It has everything that a "boy's own" adventure could offer; a decent plot, a beautiful girl (let's face it, Jacqueline Bisset is gorgeous at the best of times but put her in a wet T-shirt and she's, well, WOW!, a fabulous exotic location, a dastardly villain or two and a couple of decent goodies to battle the baddies.
It concerns about an innocent couple ( Nick Nolte and Jacqueline Bisset ) get involved in an underwater search for treasures in the island Bermuda .
The team of divers faces danger when they attempt to retrieve goods from a Spanish ship , as they spend time in shark-infested water and are helped by a treasure-seeker ( Robert Shaw ) and his underling ( Robert Tessier ) and confront nasty drug-lord ( Louis Gossett Jr ).
Jacqueline Bisset fans will ask no more than the sight of their star in a swimsuit involved in this fast-moving sunken treasure yarn.This waterlogged story is packed with gorgeous cinematography by Christopher Challis who manage to keep this afloat with fab footage maritime as expert cameraman ; furthermore pulsating musical score by the classic John Barry .
In Bermudas, while diving for pleasure, David Sanders (Nick Nolte) and Gail Berke (Jacqueline Bisset) find a submerged vessel, and they bring a couple of objects withdrawn from the ship.
They look for the advice of Romer Treece (Robert Shaw), an expert in treasures and old ships, and they realize that indeed there were two vessels in the same location: a French one, from the Eighteenth Century, with a treasure in jewels, and another one, from the war, with a load of morphine.
The wonderful locations, the magnificent photography, the good cast and the amazing beauty of Jacqueline Bisset support this movie, which is recommended for killing time only.
A young couple (Nick Nolte and Jacqueline Bisset) find some unusual coins and ampules while diving underwater.
I was fast-forwarding to get through some parts.Beautiful underwater photography, a lush score, stunning locations and good acting from Bisset and Shaw can't save this.
Written by Jaws author Peter Benchley, The Deep on the page is never fully realised here on the screen, and sadly the film never lifts itself out of standard adventure territory.
From the onset it looked to be heading in the right direction, a great first hour of genuine intrigue and tension keeps the viewer interested, we have ship wrecks, treasure, voodoo, gorgeous locale, a gruff Robert Shaw, and Jacqueline Bisset's wet t-shirt!, but the film drifts onto formulaic sand and peters out like a damp squib {or should that be squid?}.
I'm one of those folks who associated this film with Jaws, even though they are nothing alike, except underwater diving and Robert Shaw.
An interesting cast included Nick Nolte, Jacqueline Bissett, Lou Gossett Jr., Eli Wallach, and Shaw, who was very good as the experienced diver named Treece; other than his odd accent, I was very pleased with his performance and found him engaging.
The killer eel added to the mystique deep below the surface, but most of the mayhem is caused by Cloche(Gossett)and his crew, because they are after the buried morphine bottles; Gossett is also solid here as he makes the most of his scenes playing a man who knows what he wants and how to get it.
Scuba-diving sweethearts near Bermuda find a stash of morphine underwater that is guarded by a killer eel, but that's nothing compared to the trouble Louis Gossett gives them on land (he kidnaps Jacqueline Bisset and makes her strip, but we've already seen her in a wet T-shirt so that puts us one up on the villain).
However, the rest of this movie is undeniably soporific...THE DEEP tells the water drowned adventures of lovers David (Nick Nolte) and Gail (Jacqueline Bisset) who are seeking out buried treasure in the depths of the oceans.
The scene where Nolte under the seas must escape from a motley of killer, man-eating sharks is pretty decent.However, the movie spirals into repugnant mediocrity halfway through and no longer do most people even attempt to sustain any motivation for this film or its characters...
Young couple David (Nick Nolte) and Gail (the alluring Jacqueline Bisset) team up with ageing modern pirate Romer Treece (Robert Shaw in a role not unlike Quint in 'Jaws', only more of a send-up), to discover just what they've found when taking a dive at the start of the movie.What they do find is so hot it sparks the interest of the local villain, Henri Cloche (Lou Gossett, silky and evil) and his various henchmen.
Before seeing "The Deep" you might think that you have a pretty exciting experience ahead of you...after all it's based on a novel of the writer of "Jaws" (assuming you consider the script of "Jaws" one of its main virtues...), it's got a great cast and it's filmed in beautiful, natural exotic locations.
I think the main problem is that it focuses too much on its story and not enough on its characters - notice how little casual character interaction there is in this film, Nolte and Bisset are supposed to be a couple and yet have only one scene to themselves.
Watch out for baddie Lou Gossett in good form, but especially marvel at the sheer charisma, in a fairly unflattering role, of the late great Robert Shaw, surely one of Britain's most gifted screen performers..
Packed with scuba diving, undersea treasure hunting, & drug dealing villains all with the beautiful island of Bermuda as the backdrop for this Peter Benchley story.
The strong cast is lead by handsome Nick Nolte & beautiful Jacqueline Bisset along with Robert Shaw and Louis Gossett Jr. The underwater cinematography is outstanding and still stands the test of time.
Robert Shaw is not as colorful in this film as he was in JAWS.Pros: Underwater cinematography, Jacqueline BissetCons: Story, acting, directionOverall grade: D.
A vacationing couple (Nick Nolte, Jacqueline Bisset) go diving for sunken treasure and find lost morphine shipment.
Drug dealer Lou Gossett, Jr. and treasure hunter Robert Shaw become involved and things get dangerous for the couple.
Peter Benchley's novels were good middle-brow writing.Anyway, this is a film worth seeing, with lots of underwater scenes.
Just a great movie classic; Adventure, diving, criminals, characters, story, the good, the bad, the ugly.
Couple (Bisset and Nolte) holidaying in the Caribbean run afoul a drug kingpin (Gossett) after they inadvertently discover ampules of heroin amongst a treasure trove of rare antiquities whilst scuba diving near a notorious wreck.
Black magic and violence intimidate the couple, but it's a large moray eel protecting the treasure that proves to be a bigger obstacle as interests converge on the sunken treasure.Diverse supporting cast includes Eli Wallach as a crusty mariner, the sole survivor of the shipwreck's crew, Robert Tessier as Shaw's faithful assistant, and noted stage actor Dick Anthony Williams in a rather frivolous minor role as one of Gossett's hoods.
Tropical locales, taut action sequences, calypso music and a spot of cricket thrown in for good measure, "The Deep" has all the components of a competent treasure thriller and is easily Peter Benchley's next best novel-to-film conversion..
The stars, Nick Nolte and Jacqueline Bisset, a vacationing couple, find a different kind of treasure in a wreck off the Bermuda shore and soon have the island thugs around to pay them a visit.
Bisset is nice to look at in her wet t-shirts and shorts but Robert Shaw and Lou Gossett supply the key moments of drama in the film more than do Nolte or Bisset.
"The Deep" does not come close to the classic that "Jaws" is but standing on its own it is a watchable thriller.Nick Nolte and Jacqueline Bisset play young lovers on vacation in the Bahamas.
Now I read the book simply for the enormous moray nicknamed Percy, but I soon discovered the plot was far more intense, it involved a honeymooning couple in Bermuda, diving off shipwrecks for sunken treasure, fighting against greedy Cuban gangsters and angry tiger sharks, and it was very exciting, very thrilling, the eel though only made at least three appearances, it was dwarfed by the struggles between the human characters themselves, and barely seen.
Shaw and Nolte and in particular Eli Wallach plus, of course Bisset give it their best but despite a fine John Barry score, this is sunk as soon as the hoary old story rears its head.
I guess someone saw the big box office of Jaws and decided that Peter Benchley's new sea novel The Deep would be ideal if Robert Shaw got to star again.
"The Deep" is loaded with amazing under-water photography, and has undeniable, amazing atmosphere, good acting, and a few genuinely terrifying moments.Nolte is fantastic, and Robert Shaw nearly reprises his character and that characters' impact from 1975's Jaws.
Both films feature a young couple (unmarried here, married in "Underwater!") who unexpectedly run into danger while on a scuba-diving expedition in search of a lost Spanish treasure ship.
Producer Peter Guber said of the opening scene, featuring Bisset swimming underwater wearing a white T-shirt and bikini bottoms, "That T-shirt made me a rich man."David Sanders and his girlfriend Gail Berke are on holiday in Bermuda.
Bisset as Gail and Nick Nolte as David play their roles reasonably well, but Shaw is just as bad here as he was in "Jaws", and for the same reasons, overacting and affecting an eccentric accent.
Based on Peter Benchley's novel, this film(directed by Peter Yates) tells the story of a vacationing couple(played by Nick Nolte & Jacqueline Bissit) who, while scuba diving in Bermuda, stumble upon an old sunken ship containing treasure and also strange vials, both of which are wanted by local treasure hunters(played by Robert Shaw & Eli Wallach) and also local crime figures(led by Louis Gossett Jr.) The couple find themselves in increasing danger , as they try to claim the treasure, and escape with their lives.Good underwater photography and some exciting action sequences cannot overcome an overlong, tedious, and at times lurid film, though Jacqueline Bisset in a wet shirt and bikini is undoubtedly the film's highlight!.
Would Have Been Better If I Saw When It First Came Out. Date: 10 May -First Time Watch- The Deep is a movie I should have liked a lot more then I did.
Nick Nolte and Jacqueline Bisset are acceptable and Eli Wallach makes most of his minor screen time.
The film opens with Nick Nolte and Jacqueline Bisset diving in the waters off Bermuda, exploring a sunken wreck...
They soon find themselves drawn into a sea of jeopardy and intrigue involving a cargo of dangerous drugs, a fortune in Spanish treasure, ocean predators and ruthless drug smugglers accompanied by black magic voodoo...The adventure begins when they discover a strange ampule containing liquid, and a coral-encrusted Spanish medallion near the wreck of a World War II freighter..Henry Cloche (Lou Gossett), a local underworld figure with a hand of menace, offers to buy the ampule, then changes to unrefined tactics, for he knows that the small glass vessel holds the clue to a rumored cargo of morphine, convertible into a fortune...As Nolte and Bisset try to discover some light to the mystery, they unite in an alliance with Romer Treece (Robert Shaw), a strong ocean-expert recluse, who wants to punish Cloche whom he believes responsible for the death of his wife...Motivated by their own personal welfare, the trio dive depths, racing against the ticking time bomb of Cloche's vicious and relentless pressure in an effort to recover the Spanish treasure and to prevent the morphine from falling into his hand...
The dramatic events culminate in a final explosion beneath the sea...If you love to see our quiet photogenic Bisset swimming around half-naked in a breathtaking wet-T-shirt, well, don't hesitate to join our innocent heroes in their efforts to wrest the treasure from the bottom of the ocean in their dangerous underwater battle in the deep....
***SPOILERS*** The first five minutes or so of the movie "the Deep" with the beautiful Jackie Bisset scuba diving underwater with her wet T-shirt is so hot and sizzling that it almost evaporated the waters of the Caribbean Sea.After seeing Miss.
The movie "The Deep" in itself is a so/so story about a young couple David Sanders & Gail Berke, Nick Nolte & Jackie Bisset, on vacation in Bermuda.
Davir & Gail together with the help of a local sea rummy and historian Romer Treece, Robert Shaw, try to recover a sunken treasure chest of Spanish gold coins and jewelry that sank under the waves during a hurricane off the coast of Florida in 1715.
A fairly good sunken treasure film but it was Jackie Bisset, wet T-shirt and all, that was the real treasure in the movie "The Deep" and as soon as you saw her swimming underwater with a pair of lungs that can keep you afloat, better the any life preserver.
they will also have to avoid sharks, Cloche's henchmen and a particularly mean moray eel!I expected this to be another dangerous underwater animal film being rushed out to cash in on the success of 'Jaws' but thankfully it was much better than that; it is really a decent treasure hunting adventure with some drug dealers thrown in to increase the danger.
Nick Nolte and Jacqueline Bisset are officially the stars of the film, and they aren't bad, but it is Robert Shaw who steals the show as Treece; a character that isn't dissimilar to the role he played in 'Jaws'.
Nick Nolte and Jacqueline Bisset(..gosh, this woman was simply gorgeous)are visiting Bermuda from New York, scuba diving restricted waters soon discovering an ampule of morphine, a glass bottle and Spanish coin, soon getting involved with famed treasure hunter Robert Shaw and Haitan kingpin Louis Gossett Jr. El Wallach is an old alcoholic skipper whose ship was the one carrying the ampules of morphine when it sank to the lower depths of the ocean.
It was based on a Peter Benchley novel and had Robert 'Captain Quint' Shaw but despite these and many other references to 'Jaws' (including a brazenly misleading 'monster movie' styled poster), 'The Deep' was a beached whale.
As well as Bisset, the film is visually superior with rich underwater photography accompanied by an effective John Barry score which helps bring out the beauty of "the deep".
What it is is a great film about diving for lost treasure and keeping one step ahead of a local drug kingpin (Gossett) who has his own interests in what lies below.
David Sanders ( Nick Nolte ) and Gail Burke ( Jacqueline Bisset ) are treasure hunting in Bermuda waters when they find an antique Spanish coin and an ampule containing an unidentified liquid.
Basically a pair of young vacationers, Gail Berke (Jacqueline Bisset) and David Sanders (48 Hours' Nick Nolte) discover a way into a deadly wreck while diving in the Bermuda waters, and get involved in a dangerous conflict with treasure hunters.
The Deep is another Peter Benchley success, this time involving treasure, Drugs, and mystery.
David(Nick Nolte) and Gail(Jacqueline Bisset) are vacationing in Bermuda.
They take it to the best treasure hunter on the island, Romer Treece( Robert Shaw).