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Dead Calm Details

1989 Certificate 15
  • Rated:
  • 60
  • from 3651 members

Returning from duty with the Australian navy, John Ingram (Sam Neill) is surprised to be met by two policemen, who inform him of a car accident that has left his son dead and his wife, Rae (Nicole Kidman), injured. The grieving couple seeks refuge on their yacht, the Saracen. Out on the boat, the skies are sunny, the sea calm--.. Read more

Starring Sam Neill, Nicole Kidman, Billy Zane
Director Phillip Noyce
Genres Thriller

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Dead Calm

Returning from duty with the Australian navy, John Ingram (Sam Neill) is surprised to be met by two policemen, who inform him of a car accident that has left his son dead and his wife, Rae (Nicole Kidman), injured. The grieving couple seeks refuge on their yacht, the Saracen. Out on the boat, the skies are sunny, the sea calm--but on the horizon is another vessel, the Orpheus. As John and Rae approach the ship, they find a lone survivor, Hughie Warriner (Billy Zane), who tells them that the other crew members have died of food poisoning. Leaving Rae behind with the sleeping Hughie, the suspicious John boards the Orpheus--only to be confronted with a horrifying situation.
Australian filmmaker Phillip Noyce directs the film, based on a novel by Charles Williams, with great inventiveness--whether focusing on the tranquil water, the violent Hughie, the resourceful Sam, or the determined Rae with her luminous, translucent blue eyes. A suspenseful thriller reminiscent of Roman Polanski's KNIFE IN THE WATER, DEAD CALM is a chilling tale of trouble on the high seas.

Starring Sam Neill, Nicole Kidman, Billy Zane
Director Phillip Noyce
Studio WARNER HOME VIDEO
Run time DVD: 1 hr 35 mins
Certificate Certificate 15
Genres Thriller
Language DVD: English
Dubbed French, Italian
Hearing-impaired English, Italian
Subtitles DVD: Arabic, Bulgarian, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish
Released DVD: 21 Feb 2000
Production year: 1989
Format DVD
  • Critics' reviews (5) of Dead Calm

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  • 4 stars out of 5

    Nicole Kidman and director Phillip Noyce were catapulted into the Hollywood frontline by this scary revel. It's an ingenious psychological thriller in the grand Hitchcock tradition, with a very simple premise: a couple (Kidman and Sam Neill) decide to take a yachting trip to try to recover from the death of their young son, but when they rescue the sole survivor (Billy Zane) from a sinking schooner, things take a very nasty turn. But, when Noyce expertly cranks up the tension to fever pitch you'll be screaming with delicious panic in is one of the best ocean-giving shockers since Jaws.

    • Radio Times
  • Recuperating from a family tragedy, a seasoned seaman (Neill) and his young wife (Kidman) sail their yacht, the... read more on Time Out

    • Time Out
  • Most helpful member's review of Dead Calm

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  • 4 out of 4 people found this review helpful

    Rated - 5 stars

    Tense & Scary!

    This is one of the most amazing films ever! Gripping and very tense. Great cast and well acted. Just rent it!!!

      • A customer from Norwich, UK
  • Most recent members' review of Dead Calm

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  • 1 out of 1 person found this review helpful

    Rated - 4 stars

    Great film but not a great DVD

    Having seen this film many times I decided to rent it on DVD as I thought it would be 'polished' with a superior picture and surround sound.

    On this score I was bitterly disappointed. The picture quality was actually slightly grainy and I would have been forgiven for thinking it was a VHS version I was watching.

    The sound isn't 5.1 DD so again another disappointment. Compared to the sound track of 'Master & Commander' for example where you really thought you were on board a creaking ship, there were no such treats.

    But as a film per se then it's superb. Despite having seen it so many times I always cross my fingers that Sam Neal makes the jump from the tender to the yacht and the film is full of tension the whole way.

    The cast is superb - an early-career Kidman plays well with the well-cast Sam Neal as a cool headed, experienced Naval officer and Zane as the nutter.

    As a sailor I found many holes in the nautical side but that's just being picky.

      • Roger06 from England
  • News and features

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    Margot at the Wedding

    Nicole Kidman

    • 27 Feb 2008

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Rating breakdown

3,651 Member ratings
  • 100
190
  • 90
280
  • 80
641
  • 70
739
  • 60
853
  • 50
429
  • 40
258
  • 30
142
  • 20
81
  • 10
38

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    • Returning from duty with the Australian navy, John Ingram (Sam Neill) is surprised to be met by two policemen, who inform him of a car accident that has left his son dead and his wife, Rae (Nicole ...