--- title: "Deepwater Horizon: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/deepwater-horizon/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/deepwater-horizon" critics_score: 68 critics_reviews: 27 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Deepwater Horizon (2016): what the critics said Critics' score 68 from 27 reviews: 15 positive, 8 mixed, 4 negative. Most critics come down in favour, with fifteen of twenty-seven positive, and the praise is consistent about what works. The disaster itself is the draw: the sound design, the convincing physical recreation of the rig, and the chaos once the explosion begins are singled out again and again. Several reviews also credit the first hour’s patient attention to how the platform actually functions, and Kurt Russell’s performance is mentioned more often than any other. The reservations cluster around what the film leaves out. A recurring complaint is that it stays on the rig and barely touches the environmental aftermath or the wider question of corporate blame, and some find the technical dialogue of the opening half hard to follow. The spread is wide: The Guardian credits the film with keeping BP’s responsibility in view, while Slant argues that centring one man’s heroism blunts the critique, and Deadline finds the spectacle crowding out the human story altogether. ## Little White Lies — Elena Lazic Rating 3/5/4. 29 September 2016. Lazic calls it a thrilling, expertly constructed action movie that succeeds without oppressive patriotism. She praises its precise explanation of the rig’s logistics and the realism of its effects. [Read the review](https://lwlies.com/reviews/deepwater-horizon) ## The i Paper — Matthew Turner Rating ⋆⋆⋆⋆. 29 September 2016. The critic calls it a gripping, realistic disaster drama and a worthy tribute to the victims and survivors. They praise the visceral, terrifying destruction, heightened by disorienting camerawork and stunning sound design. [Read the review](https://inews.co.uk/culture/film/deepwater-horizon-film-review-23651) ## Radio Times — Trevor Johnston Rating 4/5. Johnston gives the film a favorable four-star assessment. He praises its realistic depiction of oil-rig professionals, while noting that the technical dialogue can be impenetrable. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-0mjgx4/deepwater-horizon/) ## The Guardian — Benjamin Lee Rating 4/5. 14 September 2016. Festival review. The critic calls it a gruelling, effective disaster movie and a worthy tribute to the men involved. He praises its tense, clearly delivered technical detail and its forceful focus on BP’s responsibility. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2016/sep/14/deepwater-horzion-review-mark-wahlberg-toronto-film-festival) ## Los Angeles Times — Justin Chang Fi1m's normalised score 78/100 (inferred from the text). 29 September 2016. Chang finds the film gripping and emotionally forceful, praising its harrowing disaster sequences and compassion for the workers. He singles out Kurt Russell’s performance and the realistic, beautifully filmed inferno, while noting the film leaves larger environmental questions unexplored. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-deepwater-horizon-review-20160926-snap-story.html) ## The Hollywood Reporter — Todd McCarthy Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 13 September 2016. Festival review. McCarthy finds the film an effective, fast-moving disaster drama that vividly recreates the rig’s catastrophe. He especially praises the convincing physical production and seamless technical execution, which keep the action from feeling artificial. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/deepwater-horizon-review-928722/) ## Empire — Chris Hewitt Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 26 September 2016. Hewitt finds the film an efficient, compelling depiction of the disaster, though it loses momentum once the explosion begins. He particularly praises the first hour’s meticulous detail, pacing, and realism. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/deepwater-horizon-review/) ## Evening Standard — David Sexton Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 14 September 2016. Festival review. Sexton finds the film a taut, effective disaster movie, though its first half struggles to explain the technical causes of the catastrophe. He praises the dynamically filmed explosions and fires, which heighten the crew’s terrifying sense of having no escape. [Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/toronto-film-festival-2016-deepwater-horizon-review-terror-fire-and-smoke-on-the-troubled-waters-of-an-oil-disaster-a3344641.html) ## The New Yorker — Anthony Lane Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 29 September 2016. Lane finds the film an efficient, thrilling disaster movie, though its excitement comes with a troubling sense of shame. He praises the grounded performances, especially Kurt Russell’s, and the visceral intensity of the disaster sequences. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2016/10/10/american-honey-and-deepwater-horizon-reviews) ## Variety — Peter Debruge Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 14 September 2016. Festival review. Debruge finds the film remarkably thrilling and its disaster spectacle viscerally effective, despite confusing technical action and disorienting editing. He praises the convincing heroism and sound design, while faulting the film for largely ignoring the disaster’s environmental aftermath. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2016/film/reviews/deepwater-horizon-review-mark-wahlberg-1201859869/) ## Vulture — David Edelstein Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 1 October 2016. Edelstein finds the film thrilling and moving, while criticizing it for falling short as a muckraker. He praises the sound design and the momentous, immersive staging of the disaster. [Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/2016/09/review-the-enraging-horror-of-deepwater-horizon.html) ## The New York Times Fi1m's normalised score 65/100 (inferred from the text). 30 September 2016. The URL indicates this is a New York Times review of the film. The page content is blocked, so the critic’s verdict and specific praise or complaint cannot be verified. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/30/movies/deepwater-horizon-review-mark-wahlberg.html) ## RogerEbert.com Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). The page could not be accessed, so the critic’s verdict is unavailable. No specific praise or criticism can be verified. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/deepwater-horizon-2016) ## Screen Daily — Fionnuala Halligan Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 14 September 2016. Festival review. The page identifies this as a review, but its critical verdict is not visible in the accessible text. No specific praise or complaint can be confirmed from the excerpt. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/deepwater-horizon-toronto-review/5109430.article) ## The AV Club — Ignatiy Vishnevetsky Rating C+. 29 September 2016. The critic finds the disaster film workmanlike and dramatically weak, despite its effective real-life premise. He praises the convincing details of rig workers’ daily routines and the horror-like atmosphere once the disaster begins. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/an-industrial-disaster-turns-workmanlike-in-deepwater-h-1798188914) ## Time Out — Tom Huddleston Rating 3/5. 13 September 2016. The review presents the film as a straightforward real-life disaster movie. It singles out its remembrance of the 2010 explosion, which killed 11 men and caused a devastating oil spill. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/deepwater-horizon) ## IndieWire — Eric Kohn Rating C. 13 September 2016. Festival review. Kohn finds the film a noisy but shallow disaster movie that fails to justify revisiting the tragedy. He praises its fiery detail and suspenseful recreation of the rig’s chaos, while faulting its underdeveloped characters and limited perspective. [Read the review](https://www.indiewire.com/features/general/deepwater-horizon-review-mark-wahlberg-peter-berg-tiff-2016-1201726538/) ## Slant Magazine — Jake Cole Rating 1.5/4. 19 September 2016. Cole finds the film’s focus on Mike Williams’s heroism weakens its force as a critique of corporate negligence. He praises the chaotic disaster sequences but faults the shift away from the larger outrage and consequences of the catastrophe. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/deepwater-horizon/) ## HeyUGuys Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). Festival review. The critic finds the film to be Peter Berg’s most accomplished work in some time and an effective dramatization of the disaster. They particularly praise its slow-building opening and focus on the 11 men who died. [Read the review](https://www.heyuguys.com/deepwater-horizon-review/) ## Collider — Matt Goldberg Rating B+. 29 September 2016. Festival review. Goldberg finds the film both infuriating and horrifying, praising its realism without a comforting Hollywood sheen. He singles out the immersive, nightmarish depiction of the explosion and the workers’ understated heroism. [Read the review](https://collider.com/deepwater-horizon-review/) ## Consequence — Michael Roffman Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 26 September 2016. Roffman calls the film a success, praising its humane, harrowing commemoration of the disaster’s victims. He especially singles out Berg’s visceral direction and the performances for making the rig’s destruction feel terrifying and immediate. [Read the review](https://consequence.net/2016/09/film-review-deepwater-horizon/) ## Den of Geek — Edward Douglas Rating 4/5. 28 September 2016. The review finds the film an exciting, effective disaster drama despite some Hollywood embellishment. It praises the tense suspense and the painstakingly authentic recreation of the rig and its catastrophe. [Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/deepwater-horizon-review/) ## The Ringer — K. Austin Collins Fi1m's normalised score 55/100 (inferred from the text). 3 October 2016. Collins finds the film an efficient, satisfying disaster movie, but says its focus on action leaves the tragedy and its broader implications underexplored. He particularly praises the detailed, convincingly choreographed depiction of the rig’s escalating failure. [Read the review](https://www.theringer.com/2016/10/03/uncategorized/deepwater-horizon-mark-wahlberg-disaster-movie-be3e1b2004b5) ## Paste — Andy Crump Rating 5.4/10. 28 September 2016. Crump finds the film effective as suspenseful action but underwhelming as a story, with its narrow focus weakening its treatment of the disaster’s human cost. He praises Peter Berg’s tense staging of the catastrophe and singles out Kurt Russell’s charm, while criticizing the film for neglecting the victims who died. [Read the review](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/deepwater-horizon/deepwater-horizon) ## The Wrap Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). 14 September 2016. Festival review. The critic finds the film thrilling but morally and politically troubling, especially in how it profits from a real disaster without sufficiently honoring those affected. The action set pieces and performances are praised, but the film’s treatment of the spill’s aftermath draws the strongest complaint. [Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/deepwater-horizon-review/) ## Deadline — Pete Hammond Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). 27 September 2016. Hammond finds the film explosive but not compelling, with its spectacle overwhelming the human story. He praises the action and technical work, while criticizing the jargon-heavy first half and the distance from the tragedy’s human cost. [Read the review](https://deadline.com/2016/09/deepwater-horizon-review-mark-wahlberg-peter-berg-video-1201826718/) ## Eye for Film — Angus Wolfe Murray Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 27 September 2016. The review is largely negative, finding the film confusing and its sentimental interruptions unhelpful. It praises the seamless CGI and convincing post-explosion chaos. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/deepwater-horizon-2016-film-review-by-angus-wolfe-murray) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/deepwater-horizon.md