Nerds That Geek Movie Review: 'Leviathan'

​Written by John Edward Betancourt

We have accomplished some amazing things as a species. We have cured many of the diseases that ravage our kind. We have split the atom and flown through the skies. Hell, we have even made it beyond the confines of our planet and explored outer space.  

Yet there is so much we still have to explore, specifically our oceans. We know some things about what lies beneath those great blue waves, yet so much more remains a mystery. It is that unknown that has led to incredible stories over the years, of treasures untold or incredible beasts that roam the deep. In the case of one such story, the people behind the scenes figured it was high time we made the ocean a place where man and science created their own nightmares in the 1989 science fiction/horror film, Leviathan. 

In the deep of the ocean, there are riches to be found. The Tri-Oceanic Corporation is working hard to mine silver from the ocean floor and the crew of Shack Seven is nearing the end of their contracted time at the bottom of the sea. But before they return home to enjoy their hard-earned cash, they make a startling discovery, an old sunken Russian vessel is down here with them and the secret it was supposed to keep has been accidentally unleashed upon the crew. Now, a genetic experiment gone wrong aboard the vessel is among the miners and if they don't escape quickly, this abomination will consume them all.  

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Well, there's a quick and clear reason why this film is often considered to be a B Movie...because it's another great idea gone horribly wrong and that is a shame. Because there are some kick ass actors in this movie. Peter Weller, Richard Crenna, Daniel Stern and Ernie Hudson all appear in this film and that alone made me incredibly happy the first time I ever viewed this film, but this is a movie that suffers from a major identity crisis, it doesn't know if it wants to be an homage or an original tale of terror.  

The idea of a genetic experiment works just fine, especially revolving around the notion of creating a human that can survive in any part of the ocean. But that's about as far as we get with creativity. As soon as the mutation comes aboard the film becomes an attempt to be the next Alien, obviously set underwater, but the scares are just not quite there. In fact, they're obvious at best and that's a shame, because Leviathan had the chance to impress us all with a terrifying story of people being turned into a human/aquatic hybrid and instead the movie went for the easy way out.  

Is it worth watching? For the fun factor, yes. I mean, we're talking about Peter Weller and Ernie Hudson here and believe me, Ernie has some awesome lines and I left out one thing on purpose until now, the cameo by Meg Foster is awesome as well. But don't expect anything special, this is pretty standard fare in the horror genre but it is definitely a fun way to pass an hour and a half.  

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