Abandoned (2015)

Good concept, poorly executed.

Absolutely Brilliant!

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

It was OK. I don't see why everyone loves it so much. It wasn't very smart or deep or well-directed.

120 days at sea with no food or water. How did these four Blokes from New Zealand survive? That's the entire premise for this movie and relates the true story of these brave hapless souls. Its mesmerizing viewing for the movie audience and I strongly recommend ABANDONED (10 stars) for all ages since there is no nudity or swearing. Why this movie didn't get a bigger audience is beyond me. Perhaps its because no "A" list celebrity starred in it or because it wasn't "shot" in Hollywood by a major studio, I don't know. Its movies like these, that a person discovers on there own, that makes movie watching worthwhile. The script in ABANDONED is good, it has excellent production quality, its well directed and the actors are very credible. SEE THIS MOVIE!

This is based upon a true storyIn 1989 four men set sail from Picton, NZ to Tonga in a Trimaran Yacht (google it) when a Rogue Wave capsizes the boat upside down and 119 days later they land on the Great Barrier Island. We have heard of Rogue Agents in spy movies, but a Rogue Wave? Actually, there is such a thing and it can also actually endanger large ships. (You googled it, right?)Of the 4-men on board only one, the owner of the boat, John (Peter Feeney) was a seasoned sailor and everything he owned was tied up into the boat called the Rose Noelle. The others Jim (Dominic Purcell), Rick (Owen Black), and Phil (Greg Johnson) were along for the adventure and had family who learned later there was no hope of a rescue as no search party could locate them. John had no family and the boat was all that he had. Of course, there were bumps along the way and they had to learn to work together to survive. The most important item a licensed marine radio was not on board as John didn't want to endure the expense, and, of course, this set the others against him in a heart beat. The photography was sensational as was the acting by all. Nothing was overdone. They learned how to capture fish and Phil remarked that they had so much food, they should have others over and this brought on a few chuckles. At one point they spied a sailing ship in the distance and tried to send smoke signals, which didn't work. I wondered why they didn't use mirrors glinting off the sun that would be seen even at a great distance. Why indeed?At the end, when they told their story government officials did not believe them nor did the New Zealand populace for the most part. How could they survive 119 days without anyone seeing them? It wasn't possible they said. The government launched an investigation. Over all this was a very enjoyable true story. Watch to the end to see what happened to all of them. John, who lost everything probably wrote the story that became this movie. If there is a lesson to be learned it is: make sure there is a good marine radio on board should you venture out onto the high seas. You just never know. (7/10)Violence: Not really. Sex: No. Nudity: No. Language: Some in the beginning, then it went away.

It's not a bad movie, the only problem is that none of them looks like being lost in the sea for 119 days. I'll take that as a production error, for instance, movies like Cast Away, Life of Pi, ... actors would gradually "look" like they've been lost in the sea for that long (skinny, tanned, sun burned, dehydrated, messy long hairs, dirty, torn clothes, ... etc..). But in the movie "Abandoned", actors look about the same from the beginning to the end (check Dominic Purcell's hair ...). Also, most of these types of movies, it will either emphasize the scientific/technical parts, or the mental/spiritual aspects of human, but this movie just very lightly grazed through any of it, and it's a movie that leaves no impact, no thoughts after.

But this was entertaining in a made for television genre . I never have ten lines of info to say about a film . So the rest of this review will be something that has nothing to do with this movie .At the age of two, Dominic and his family moved from England to Sydney's Bondi and then moved to the Western Suburbs. After becoming a landscape gardener, he soon tired of the profession and, whilst watching the war movie Platoon (1986), decided to become an actor. Due to his working-class background, acting seemed a very unlikely choice of career, so he didn't pursue it until sometime later. He studied at The Australian Theatre for Young People (ATYP) and then later enrolled at the Western Australian Academy of Performing arts where he met his future wife Rebecca and studied with Hugh Jackman.In 1997, Dominic scored a role in the TV series Raw FM (1997) and then landed a part in Mission: Impossible II (2000), which was filmed in Australia. He was soon spotted by a US talent scout and went off to LA. Since then, Dominic has been working constantly with roles in the movie Equilibrium (2002), the TV show John Doe (2002), Blade: Trinity (2004), and in the upcoming thriller Three Way (2004) and a new police television drama, Strut. - IMDb Mini Biography By: Aeryn