This expensive production is an adventure/horror movie set on the ocean, but it veers into being overly silly. Criminals take over a luxurious cruise ship traveling in the South China Sea, only to discover they aren’t alone. A strange and frightening entity from the deep was already there. Treat Williams and Kevin J. O'Connor are the leads who unintentionally bring the hijackers along for the ride, while Famke Janssen portrays a passenger who survives the ordeal. Anthony Heald appears as the ship’s questionable owner, and Wes Studi is one of the main henchmen. "Deep Rising," released in 1998, attempts to combine elements of "The Poseidon Adventure" (from 1972) with "Alien Resurrection" (1997), but it's weighed down by silliness and a creature that does things that are hard to believe. While the monster has some intriguing qualities, it isn’t original; it’s clearly copied from the appearance of the Celestial Man in Marvel Comics’ The Defenders #14, published in 1974. Despite these problems, it can be an enjoyable and exciting experience if you're willing to overlook them. The actors are a varied bunch and give energetic performances. However, it remains essentially a low-quality adventure/horror film—one that cost significantly more than typical B-movies and failed at the box office. The female characters are limited to Famke Janssen, who didn’t particularly impress me (though she's fine), with Una Damon in a minor part. The movie has a running time of 1 hour, 46 minutes. GRADE: C

Source on TMDB