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Deepwater Horizon

2016 · Directed by Peter Berg

🧘4

Woke Score

68

Critic

🍿73

Audience

Ultra Based

Critics rated this 64 points above its woke score. Among Ultra Based films, this critic score ranks #671 of 1469.

Consciousness MeterUltra Based
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Synopsis

A story set on the offshore drilling rig Deepwater Horizon, which exploded during April 2010 and created the worst oil spill in U.S. history.

Consciousness Assessment

Deepwater Horizon functions as a straightforward disaster thriller, grounded in the mechanics of catastrophe rather than cultural commentary. The film documents the 2010 oil rig explosion with technical precision and focuses on the survival instincts of workers caught in the crisis. While the narrative involves corporate negligence and environmental devastation, these elements serve the plot rather than any particular ideological argument. Peter Berg's direction emphasizes visceral realism and human drama over systemic critique or progressive messaging. The cast reflects the actual offshore workforce demographics without attempting to frame this as representative progress. The film treats its subject matter as a technical and human story, not as a platform for contemporary social consciousness, which accounts for its minimal cultural markers of modern progressive sensibility.

Analysis generated by our Consciousness Algorithm

Critic Reviews

68%from 52 reviews
St. Louis Post-Dispatch88

This is very much an ensemble film, with Wahlberg, Hudson and Russell turning in performances that get the job done without begging for attention.

Calvin WilsonRead Full Review →
NPR85

An action flick entertaining enough to justify the more than $100 million it took to make it come alive on-screen. And come alive, Deepwater Horizon does, in 107 minutes of terse, tight storytelling, a good 95 of which are white-knuckle tense.

Bob MondelloRead Full Review →
Consequence83

Berg offers a visceral experience that overwhelms with startling humanity.

Michael RoffmanRead Full Review →
Slant Magazine38

The film should have been a cautionary tale, but in Peter Berg's hands, it's a hollow account of the resilience of the human spirit.