Susan Granger’s review of “The 33” (Warner Bros./Alcon Entertainment)
On August 10, 2010, 33 Chilean miners were buried alive by the catastrophic explosion and collapse of a 121 year-old gold and copper mine. For the next 69 days, an international team endeavored to rescue them, as millions of people around the world watched. This is their story.
Opening with the ominous statistic that 12,000 miners die annually in work accidents, it begins at a retirement party in Copiapo, honoring an old-timer who has only a few days left before hanging up his hardhat forever. That’s where the primary characters are introduced.
There’s shift supervisor Don Lucho (Lou Diamond Phillips), young father-to-be Alex Vega (Mario Casas), philandering Yonni Barrios (Oscar Nunez), Elvis impersonator Edison Pena (Jacob Vargas), Bolivian newcomer Carlos Mamani (Tenoch Huerta), and alcoholic Dario Segovia (Juan Pablo Raba). The most recognizable is Mario Sepulveda (Antonio Banderas), who becomes their leader.
The terror begins at the San Jose Mine under the rugged Atacama Desert, as fateful cracks in the mountain wall signal impending disaster. Trapped under 700 tons of rock, “Super” Mario allocates food and water distribution in the small, sweltering cavern called “the Refuge.”
Above ground, families gather in a makeshift camp, including Maria (Juliette Binoche) as Dario Segovia’s strident, estranged sister. (Binoche replaced Jennifer Lopez, who would have been far more convincing as the itinerant empanada-vendor.)
Chile’s idealistic, new Mining Minister Laurence Golborne (Rodrigo Santoro) supervises the rescue efforts of a team led by civil engineer Andre Sougarret (Gabriel Byrne). In an uncredited cameo, James Brolin is an American drilling engineer.
Based on a superficial scenario by Jose Rivera and Hector Tobar’s authorized account “Deep Down Dark,” it’s formulaically scripted by Mikko Alanne, Craig Borten and Michael Thomas, and conventionally directed by Mexican-born Patricia Riggen (“Under the Same Moon,” “Girl in Progress”), except for one intriguing scene of magical realism.
Photographed by Checco Varese in two working mines in Colombia, its authenticity is obvious, particularly as men are lifted, one-by-one, in a capsule lowered 2,300 below the surface.
On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “The 33” is a solid, survivalist 6, an inspirational tribute to their fortitude, resilience and spirit.
