The Chamber

Despite low rating at the time (now is 5.1),I am found of sea-related movies and submarines. I found a well done movie, non banal plot, good recitation and story. I suggest to see this movie to the sea-lover as me. Definitively some discrepancies arise in dialogues, and some stops (boring) happen during some dialogues. So i conclude not a perfect movie, but it tells a story. My thumbs are up

I just watched "The Chamber" (2016)

I had never heard of that movie, not even seen the trailer, so it was a gamble when I started it.

The poster-image and short synopsis just made it look like it could be interesting and worthwhile. It didn't actually say much about what to expect from the movie, other than that it was about some people being trapped at the bottom of the ocean in some small, but otherwise un-defined, chamber.

It didn't really give a clue as to what this chamber was. A sunken boat or ship? An alien city? Underground caves? It just said 'a small chamber'.

Ok, why not, I've been pleasantly surprised before by unknown movies, so I figured it was worth a shot :)

The movie begins... somebody comes walking in semi-dirty socks... on some ship of some kind... clearly not first class or anything remotely 'blinged up' (I first thought it was a fishing-boat actually, simply because of another movie I watched recently, which was an Alien-clone movie taking place on a fishing-boat starring Lance Henriksen (you know, the knife-wielding robot in Alien2 who preferred to be called 'artificial person' :) ))

Anyway, it turns out it's not a fishing-boat but some kind of research-vessel... and that the guy with the semi-dirty socks speaks swedish...

Hang on, I think to myself, the other day I started an unknown movie that begins with somebody speaking danish... now I start one that begins with somebody speaking swedish... deja vu or what? :)

I kind of hope so at that point, because the one that began with somebody speaking danish turned out to be awesome, so how cool would it be if this movie actually repeated that.

And then the movie just takes off :)

It doesn't wait around to build up or lead on before it gets going. It just takes off. Just like that :)

I suppose they could have made it 2 hours long and have it go at a slower pace, but the anti-procrastination of this movie actually works pretty well for its style and story. By doing it this way we (the audience) are kind of put in the same boat (pardon the pun) as the lead-character who doesn't really know what's going on. He's just being thrust into a situation he doesn't know anything about, and so are we along with him.

It was a very tense 1½ hour that followed :)

It's really only 4 people in the main bulk of the movie, but they are superb. I have seen the swedish actor before, but I didn't know the other 3. But they were cast exceptionally well. The tension was really palpable. No nonsense of any kind (No silly VFX or pointless jump-scares or lame senseless dialog), but just clean images and tight acting and well thought-out story-line all the way through.

And the music was perfect too, really getting your heart racing and your nerves sweating :)

It really felt like we (the audience) were there, like we were the 5th person along with the 4 others, being given the real deal, that our lives were really on the line with every decision made, in this movie, and not just watching it from a safe distance like some kind of theater-play. In that way the format the director chose for this film was simply brilliant.

The story is very cool, but I won't say what it's about (Find out for yourself :) )

And just to cement it; the cast is crazy-good :) Their performances were A-list good.

And the ending... damn... I can't really say anything without giving it away, but damn, very strong :)

I recommend this movie.

The Chamber is a tedious, suspense-free thriller that wastes the talents of its cast. The film follows a team of special ops agents who commandeer a research vessel and its submersible to locate an item at the bottom of the Yellow Sea. When an explosion causes the sub to take on water, the crew members quickly realize that not all of them are going to survive.

The film's biggest problem is its lack of tension. The characters are one-dimensional and the dialogue is wooden. The action scenes are poorly staged and the special effects are subpar. The film's only saving grace is its cast, which includes Johannes Kuhnke, Charlotte Salt, and James McArdle. However, even their best efforts are not enough to save this sinking ship.

The Chamber is a disappointing film that fails to deliver on its premise. If you're looking for a suspenseful thriller, you'll want to look elsewhere.

Here are some of the specific problems with the film:

The characters are one-dimensional and underdeveloped. We learn very little about them, and as a result, we don't care about them.

The dialogue is wooden and unnatural. The characters often say things that don't make sense, or that they wouldn't say in real life.

The action scenes are poorly staged and the special effects are subpar. The film's climax is particularly disappointing, as it is both boring and visually unappealing.

The film's pacing is slow and plodding. The film takes its time getting to the point, and by the time it does, you're likely to be bored out of your mind.

Overall, The Chamber is a disappointing film that fails to deliver on its premise. If you're looking for a suspenseful thriller, you'll want to look elsewhere.

The dialog is captivating from start to finish. They are in the same little crevice the entire movie and I'm still on the edge of my seat. 8/10 easy. The lead dude actor is a cool sob. What a great actor.

There was no intent on hating on 'The Chamber' before seeing it, and actually do wish that it was a halfway decent film. Would never watch any film, television series etc. with that attitude, do find that an immature way of judging a film, and actually did like the concept. And despite how some of my reviews may sound, this is somebody who tries to be encouraging when rating and reviewing a film, while offering any necessary criticism, and hates hating on them.

Even when trying to see it with an open mind, 'The Chamber' just didn't work for me. It is not a completely awful film, irredeemable films are not an awful lot, though not exactly rare, compared to the billions of films that exist as of now. From personal view (again), 'The Chamber' is also not a particularly good film at all, mind you this is agsin a very subjective opinion that is, and there is a lot that works against it that outweighs the little that works in its favour.

Starting with the least bad things, the acting was serviceable, with an engaging lead performance from Johannes Kuhnke in particular. The visuals also to me weren't too bad, have seen far cheaper-looking films, the sets are limited but the photography shows some skill and atmosphere and the editing has coherence.

Audio wasn't too unappealing either, it didn't sound too loud or like it was placed too predictably.

On the other hand, 'The Chamber' badly suffers from a complete lack of tension and suspense, and some of it does get rather on the ridiculous side. The pace never really comes to life, so too much of the film is bland and dull. Despite the best efforts of the actors, the characters' illogical character behaviours and sketchy character developments did work against them, a shame because the actual performances were as said not bad at all.

Furthermore, the story is completely flat and has no tension or suspense whatsoever, it's little more than a dreary muddle with absolutely nothing felt throughout. Pancakes have more life than the script and more natural dialogue has been found in an episode of the worst of Cartoon Network or something, not that that is much of an endorsement.

In summary, weak but have seen far worse. 3/10