The Deep is a five episode BBC production starring Minnie Driver and two other actors who I am sure are famous on Mud Island. It has mostly been panned by critics, but Tony and I quite enjoyed it. We found it pretty gripping and watched it over several consecutive evenings.
It’s set almost entirely on a submarine, 600 metres beneath the North Pole. The crew are visiting a hydrothermal vent field to do scientific research, but first have to figure out what happened to an earlier expedition that was lost with all hands, six months prior. The repercussions of their discoveries (we are told) could set off world wars if the information they uncover were to fall into the wrong hands. And besides the explosive discoveries, the crew find themselves trapped under the ice with no power, communications, and limited air. It’s uncertain as to whether they’ll escape with their lives (cue DRAMATIC MUZAK).
I’m not sure what audience this was intended for, but there’s a lot of repetitious explanation of what’s happening, and I imagine the actors must have felt like total bananas saying some of the lines. Stating the obvious – often summarising the entire series of events that has transpired to date – is commonplace. The script is not in the tradition of Shakespeare. That said, it gets the job done, and it’s the atmospheric interior of the Russian submarine and the cramped but high-tech British submersible that provide much of the interest and entertainment.
I must confess not to be terribly well-versed in the undersea horror genre, but this is more of a thriller than a horror (for which I was grateful). I think this series has what must be the standard ingredients of cramped spaces, uncertain future survival, and some emotional entanglements to add spice to the plot.
I was annoyed and disappointed by Minnie Driver’s character, Frances Kelly, who is the captain of the British submarine. She’s supposed to be a capable, unflappable leader, but is reduced to a simpering lip-quivering mass of jelly by one of her crew, with whom she is having an adulterous affair. Her leadership abilities are seriously compromised by their attraction, and we find her uttering a lot of painfully embarrassing pleas in his general direction (as he prepares to commit unspeakable acts of courage), accompanied by heaving bosoms and wide eyes.
Initially I was pleased to see what appeared to be a positive female role model in Captain Kelly – and the submarine’s crew is pretty diverse in all respects – but the ultimate message recieved is that even a woman who is a highly-qualified scientist and leader will be undone in all respects by the devastating charisma and good looks of her one true love (or lust). And, also, that if you’re in LURVE, an adulterous affair is just fine. Bleugh. End of rant. I think Captain Kathryn Janeway , captain of the Starfleet starship USS Voyager, spoiled me.
There are some illogical and impossible to justify decisions on the part of members of the crew, numerous implausibilities, and some downright ridiculous situations… For example, “triangulating the click signals” of the pod of beluga whales visible through the front windscreen (is that the right term?) of the submarine in order to find the hole in the ice to which they’re headed, instead of just following them using visual contact… Maybe I’m just not sophisticated enough!
There’s not much marine life on show – the aforementioned beluga, and a squid-like deepsea creature with glowing dots – but the focus here is on the storyline and the cramped interiors of the submarines.
The DVD is available here. Here’s the official BBC website page for the mini-series.
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