The 33

I went into this show skeptical. Some critics apparently did not like this movie and it disappointed me because I was looking forward to fully enjoying "The 33". Despite this, I still enjoyed the movie and it has become better each time I watch it because the criticism surrounding this show has become lost in time. The film was accurate and emotional. I enjoyed the surreal moments during the telling of the story. "The 33" does contain some flaws however.

Some true stories take decades to find their way onto the movie screen but the actual mining disaster took place only 5 years before the making of this movie. The biggest flaw of the movie was the use of English/Spanish to tell the story. The film is 90% English but then some newscasters are depicted speaking Spanish. Other movies based on true stories that involve foreign languages are able to effectively help the audience accept the use of English instead of the original language. This is accomplished by having the original language of the story used at the very start and then an obvious transition happens so that the audience will mentally understand that some liberties are being taken in order that the film can be better enjoyed. Some examples can be seen in "Valkyrie" and "The Other Side of Heaven". Sometimes, the film acts out the story in the original tongue such as "Letters From Iwo Jima". In the case of "The 33", there is no acknowledgment at the start of the movie that the language of the story has been changed. We hear the Chileans speaking English but the written words on signs and news broadcasts are in Spanish. Subtitles are even employed to translate Spanish for the moviegoers (Netflix should have included that for their streaming version). This was a distraction from the story but less annoying the second time you watch the movie. Still, the filmmakers should have stuck with one language and I would have chosen Chilean Spanish. I liked the dream sequence during the "last meal". It is both funny and heart wrenching. Half way through the movie, I was worried that the film would only tell the story of how the miners survived until discovery and then skip forward to when they emerged one-by-one to the surface. I was grateful that the film took some time to show what happened between discovery and recovery. The miners go from starving to living as comfortable as one can expect trapped in a mine. They have communication with their families, newspapers, electronic devices, clothing, food, etc. It is very surreal and could still affect the men mentally unless they are rescued. Another surreal moment is at the end. These men, although trapped for 69 days, come out dressed as if nothing had happened. They were found half naked and starving but rise up looking reasonably well. I was also hoping that the film would acknowledge the last man out and I wondered who it would be. As in real life, it was Luis. I applaud the sudden cut to black followed by sound effects. The inclusion of Catholicism was fundamental. In a time when religion is under attack, it is great to see a movie that accurately depicts the power a religion can have on the fate of those who are in trouble.

The actual 33 men helped in the production of this movie. Also, some filming was done at Copiapo. I always like when films based on true stories recreate the events on location. Everyone knows actor Antonio Banderas but I recognized Bob Gunton as President Pinera. Gonton has been in a bunch of movies I have seen in the past. This is one of the last films with a musical score by Oscar-winner James Horner and I was thankful to the dedication to him in the end credits. I noticed that when the first miner comes up in the movie, the music resembled the score on "Titanic". I think "The 33" would have been even better in the hands of more experienced filmmakers. Despite this, the movie is still worth seeing. It pays respect to the real life participants by telling the story accurately and with sincerity.

4 Stars