The Deep

Having read some of the critics reviews, most of which were not very complementary, I decided to give this miniseries a go considering I like most of the cast. Minnie Driver, Goran Visnjic. Sacha Dhawan (who played a delightfully evil Master in the most recent Dr Who series) and Antonia Thomas (from the Good Doctor) as talented people I have appreciated for some time, so I gave this a go. And I was pleasantly surprised.

While I did pick up on some issues with scientific inaccuracies (show me a sci-fi show that doesn't for the sake of speeding the narrative up) I did find the story and intrigue compelling. The characters weren't one-dimensional, they (mostly) had depth (pun intended) and the themes of international politics interfering with scientific endeavour were quite accurate. While politicians mouth "save the world", they are often in the pocket of corporations, so the notion that they are motivated by a desire for world peace and lowering our dependence on fossil fuels is naive when you consider how much money is involved. If a natural biofuel was discovered that replaced oil it would be fought, pure and simple.

That theme was explored here in depth in imaginative ways.

There are high prices that are paid along the way, friendships are made and lost.

The CG isn't perfect, but even on my 4K TV it still looked good today.

So, don't let the nay-sayers turn you off. Give The Deep a go. It's value Sci-Fi with a modern tale to tell.

Now this did have the potential to be great. I loved the idea and I like James Nesbitt and Minnie Driver. However, despite this great concept and a great cast(on paper that is), The Deep never quite takes off. In fact, a vast majority of it was awful I'm afraid, and I honestly didn't want to say that.

The Deep does have some redeeming qualities. The scenery and photography are excellent and the effects are above average.

However, The Deep has a number of problems. One, the pacing is incredibly sluggish. Two, while the concept was great the story was repetitive and dull. Three, the dialogue is banal and stupid more than it is intelligent and thought-provoking. Four, the direction is pretty heartless. Five, some scenes drag really badly and not helped by some very awkward pauses. Six, the character situations are clichéd and the characters you don't feel anything for. Seven, the acting was not great... at all- it is not the matter of that nobody can act, it is that nobody has anything worthwhile to work with. James Nesbitt(Murphy's Law and the brilliant Occupation) tries hard but is let down by his dialogue and character, while Minnie Driver has some really wooden delivery. Goran Visjinc did little for me either, while there are some members of the cast that don't delve into their characters enough or are too young for them. Finally, the final part of the drama is really quite laughable to say the least.

To conclude, I tried to like The Deep, but the story, pacing and dialogue really spoil what could have been an intriguing drama. 2/10 for the scenery mainly. Bethany Cox

I've never been too fond of underwater/submarine movies, James Cameron's The Abyss movie from 1989 being a wonderful exception. BBC's The Deep explores similar territory to Abyss... What the heck is down there? Excellent sets, colors & moods with a fantastic cast.

James Nesbitt is in my top five UK character actors and though he is hard-pressed to top his brilliant Hyde/Jekyll in the mini-series "Jekyll" he once again brings a depth to his role that most can't even begin to touch.

I first became aware of the beautiful Minnie Driver from the sadly cancelled series The Riches (with Eddie Izzard)and every moment she is on screen in The Deep is sheer delight.

After three episodes The Deep is a tense, exciting, slightly sci-fi drama that once again places the BBC in the top slot along with HBO.

Highly recommended IMHO!

This mini series was to my mind a complete waste of time and money.

The series started off reasonably well, a decent amount of mystery, a few likable characters and a group of actors whose previous work I have loved. It all went down hill pretty soon, I had no respect for the characters who were more concerned with their own personal agenda's and social problems than with the mission in hand. The script had a couple of amusing moments but for the most part dropped and I was able to predict with absolute accuracy which characters would and wouldn't survive the series. The 'frantic' efforts to get the sub going was pretty hilarious and had me yelling at the screen "Stop wasting time!" a sure sign that I was wasting mine.

Surprisingly it was the unknowns (pretty much unknown to me) in the group that kept me interested in this, I found myself fast forwarding through the Minnie, Goran, Orla and James moments to get to the people that interested me.

Finally the ending was predictable and had me relieved that the series wouldn't ever continue, I am incredibly surprised that the BBC churned out this rubbish but then again they are responsible for the recent travesty known as 'Alice and her six dads' a reality show that was really just a showcase for a self obsessed bride.

Mediocre - average: lacking exceptional quality.

The once great BBC has fallen foul yet again to that great modern British attribute; mediocrity. While usually I would applaud the BBC for it's policy on social cohesion the actors inclusion is just well......formulaic. The way in which the BBC put together this drama is almost as though it was drama-by-numbers.

All the building blocks are there:

Ethnic minorities represented (including the new kid on the British block the eastern European) check.

Evil state puppet to attract liberals: check

SF concept to attract males under 45: check

Unnecessary romance to draw in female viewers: check.

Complicated yet vague plot: check.

Sum of all it's parts....FAIL.

The dialogue was ABYSS-mal, the characters seemed to ALIENate the audience rather than draw them and I do understand why viewers might seem DEEPly LOSTed when watching it.