DeepStar Six (1989)

A secret underwater team are exploring the possibilities of underwater colonisation with the financial backing from the US Navy and in return for that they blow up an underwater carven so they can construct a deep-sea missile silo, though in doing so they release some sort of prehistoric sea monster that picks off the team one by one- but that's only one of their many problems.

This is a very formulaic- but reasonably fun Horror-Sci-Fi film by director Sean. S Cunningham (Friday the 13th), which came out the same time as the overblown- but dull 'The Abyss' and for me the best of the three 'Leviathan'.

Fairly routine stuff, but still it has it's moments of sheer excitement. The setting of the film is good, from the set details of the 'DeepStar six' laboratory base, where most of the action occurs too the alienation of the calm ocean floor.

The characters are your stereotypical types, but the performances are well-delivered with Miguel Ferrer as the very edgy and hysterical Snyder who steals the show and Matt McCoy as the wise cracking Richardson adds some life too. The script had its tedious spots of state the bloody obvious comments- but it's mostly bearable, with some added wit provided by McCoy's character.

The direction by Cunningham is solid, with some nice touches of suspense created and not forgetting a couple of gory moments that truly standout. While the plot is reasonable- it still follows your usual monster on the loose formula, though the idea of the creature's origin was interesting- but it definitely could have been explored in to more. Though other than a sea-monster causing trouble for the underwater crew they also face human foolishness and a leaking laboratory base, with some of the crew falling victims to themselves than the monster.

The pace can be slow at times, though that does help add tension and it definitely picks up in the last 40mins when the monster actually fully appears. While the special effects and the monster itself is fair and it does look a bit like the monsters from 'Tremors' and add a bit of crab too- but it does look more ridiculous and very rubbery when the whole design appears on screenÂ… I was hoping that they would keep it mostly hidden e.g. 'Jaws'- but overall it's not too distracting.

Well, have I gone soft, as this discreet sea-monster film has definitely improved on my second viewing?

Fmovies: "DeepStar Six" is just another "Alien" clone, to be ranked with all "Alien" clones as just another time waster. This might be what it deserves, however, it can be noted as a few notches above other "Alien" clones for its excellent cast, which, even when the story and writing become pretty silly, sticks to it and keeps things running smoothly. The characters are pretty convincing as well, epecially for such low standards as this. And while most of the film is talkly and uneventful, I will proudly state that the last half hour are great and very tension-filled. I was very pleased with the climax, and even the monster was acceptable. If the whole film had been as surprising as gripping as the last half-hour, this might have been the greatest "Alien" clone around. Instead, it's just a pretty good, low-budget flick that's worth watching once or twice if it comes on cable.

**1/2 out of ****

Okay, it's no The Abyss or anything, but for a knock-off of a knock-off, it's pretty damn decent.

The effects, though pretty low budget, are nonetheless well done. The creature design is pretty cool. The characters are likeable and well-written enough to keep me invested in what was happening.

It's no game changer to be sure, but if you're looking for some b-movie monster fun, you could certainly do much worse than this.

DeepStar Six fmovies. I remembered watching DeepStar Six on TV as a kid, about the same time I first watched "The Abyss." While this movie is not as suspenseful, dramatic and adventurous as "The Abyss," I still found it to be quite entertaining and fun.

The film starts off with a crew in a sub doing some sort of experiment on an underwater nuclear base. However, their presence then disturbs an unidentified giant sea creature, which I thought resembled a large lobster. The creatures attacks the sub and crew and then the rest of the movie is basically a struggle for survival with some intense monster action.

The movie is sort of predictable and the cast of characters weren't as memorable as I recalled, but it has a quick-paced plot with good special effects and intense monster action one might find enjoyable.

Grade B-

This film plays like the little brother of THE ABYSS with a twist of ALIEN thrown in the mix. Fortunately, it doesn't bog itself down like THE ABYSS by incorporating a tedious, needless social statement in the final 45 minutes like Cameron's vastly overrated film. Be that as it may, this is still a rather weak B-film with poor characterization and a by-the-numbers plot.

When a group of underwater workers disturb the lair of a sea creature the monster gets its revenge by destroying their base and snacking on the crew. The crew are all quite underdeveloped, even the romantic leads of Greg Evigan and Nancy Everhard. (SPOILER) You know when characters are about to die because they'll start start talking about their New Hampshire farm like Cindy Pickett or greasy hamburgers like Matt McCoy.

STORY: $$$ (This isn't a bad story it just offers nothing new. The characterization is weak because it tries to forcefeed clichés. Miguel Ferrer plays the doofus Bill Paxton character of ALIENS and the romantic link between Everhard and Evigan is too weak for my money. None of the other characters are even moderately developed leaving the viewer with little invested in the people on the screen).

ACTING: $$$ (The acting wasn't the problem. Miguel Ferrer clearly gives the best performance in this film with his excellent, slimy portrayal of Snyder, the ever-picked-upon handyman eager to get topside. I thought Nia Peeples and Nancy Everhard should have changed roles because Everhard's character was a tough-as-nails Navy officer and Nancy, although she clearly got into solid shape for the role, looks more like a schoolmarm than a soldier--Peeples on the other hand, has the hard body for a female Navy officer but her line readings were way too fast. I felt like whenever Nia had a line I had accidentally hit the fast forward button. The other actors were fine. Evigan is okay as the male lead and Matt McCoy does a solid job as the goof-off. Ferris Bueller's mom, Cindy Pickett, gives a solid performance as the base's medical officer and Marius Weyers is great as always. His character really needed to be more developed though).

NUDITY: None, but no female cast member wears a bra in this movie. They didn't quite adhere to their packing list before departing on this six-month deployment.

the first 30 minutes of this movie are fairly boring,with not much happening.the film begins to pick up after that.it's basically Alien underwater,though nowhere near as good as that movie.the characters are not as complex,nor is the storyline.it's a B movie,in every respect.when the creature is finally revealed,it's a disappointment.at least i thought it was.unlike Alien,where you get to know the characters,here you really don't,so there's nothing invested in their fates.when they died,the only reaction i could come up with was a yawn.they're all underwritten.the movie is also predictable from the get go.still,it's not the worst movie of the genre,so i give DeepStar Six a 5/10