Skipping Across The Pond

Here is my review of Into The Blue, released on DVD on December 26, 2005.

John Stockwell has had an interesting career in Hollywood. He spent the 80's as an actor, appearing in films like Christine, Losin' It, and of his small but key role as "Cougar" in Top Gun. While at same time he could also be seen on the small screen in tele-films, such as, Billionaire Boys Club and "North and South". As time passed though, he has gotten away from acting, turning his attention to directing and producing instead...

Into The Blue follows Jared (Paul Walker), a frustrated treasure hunter, who is still looking to find his fortune. His girlfriend Sam (Jessica Alba) is supportive, but has a more level head about the whole thing. The chance discovery of some once-buried riches from a legendary shipwreck on the ocean floor also leads them to the wreckage of a small airplane filled with a mega-stash of cocaine. Jared's best pal Bryce (Scott Caan), and his latest girlfriend Amanda (Ashley Scott), convince him to use the drugs to pay for the raising of the ship, things get complicated (not really). That happens (not really) when some nasty drug dealers come calling for their merchandise. All bets are off.

Stockwell must really like to direct films with scantily clad actors playing in water--Blue Crush and Crazy/Beautiful also had their fair share of both. While the scenery of the film is indeed very nice to look at, as a thriller things are pretty generic here. Matt Johnson's script is filled with groan inducing dialogue. Take this line uttered by Sam: "I believe in you more then the profit of any treasure", ugh!! The story's BIG MYSTERY is not that much of a surprise, and if you are paying attention, you should figure it out fairly quickly. For their part, Alba and Walker, do have some chemistry and try really hard to make it work. It's not enough...The action is OK, but the film also grinds to a halt at times, taking forever...Clearly not as much fun as it should have been.

The extras on the disc include a commentary track from Stockwell, and despite my murky feelings about the film, I have to say, it's a solid track Most of the info he talks about will hold your interest. Diving Deeper Into the Blue is your standard glossy EPK-style featurette and includes plenty of film clips inter cut with chatter about the production from Stockwell, Alba, Walker, Scott ET AL, A set of 10 deleted scenes, available with or without comment from Stockwell. Most of the scenes really don't add much--save for an alternate open that has Jared rescue a boy at sea. It's well staged... There are three screen tests clips, as well, featuring some of the cast and a boatload of trailers for other studio releases to top things off.

While I can look at Alba in a bikini all day long...I have to say that Into The Blue isn't as much fun as (what is clearly designed as) a guilty pleasure should be