It is no secret that 2016 has been the absolute worst. This year has brought us the disastrous presidential election, taken away some of our most beloved celebrities (RIP, Carrie Fisher), and, all in all, is best summed up by the term "dumpster fire." Basically, 2016 cannot be over soon enough, which is why the by-the-numbers, but oh so satisfying disaster flick, Poseidon, is the one New Year's movie you need to watch to ring in 2017.
Poseidon, a 2006 remake or reinterpretation of 1972's The Poseidon Adventure, is about a group of passengers on a luxury ocean liner forced to fight for survival after the boat is hit by a rogue wave on New Year's Eve. As the ship slowly sinks, a group of passengers decide to disobey orders and try to make their way through the destroyed ship to a lifeboat. The movie stars Josh Lucas, Kurt Russell, Jacinda Barrett, Richard Dreyfuss, and (my personal faves) Emmy Rossum and Mike Vogel, as the rag tag team of heroes. Together, they battle fire, injuries, near drownings, and death — all as they ring in the New Year. It's complete escapism, which is exactly what we all need this holiday.
Let me be perfectly clear: Poseidon isn't really a great movie. In fact, I highly doubt it was ever supposed to be. The writing isn't particularly inspired, and neither is the romance or the peril. What Poseidon is is fun. And I think that's just what the end of 2016 calls for, don't you? This is a movie that isn't too realistic, and it's political in the slightest. No matter who you voted for in the election, Poseidon won't make you think of the uncertainty of our future or the divisiveness of politics. It's not a movie about aliens or a dystopian future, so it doesn't have a huge moral lesson or political stand. It's just about the perils of being on a luxury ship on New Year's Eve.
It's been a very, very long year. In many ways, 2016 has felt a little bit like we're all on a big ship, and, despite our best efforts, we've all been slowly sinking into the ocean. I can't think of a better way to celebrate the end of 2016 than with a New Year's movie that takes that feeling and turns it into an actual plot. Let's hope we all get to stay above water in 2017.
