Flood (film)

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Flood
Directed by Tony Mitchell
Produced by Justin Bodle
Written by Novel:
Richard Doyle
Screenplay:
Matthew Cope
Richard Doyle
Starring Robert Carlyle
Jessalyn Gilsig
David Suchet
Music by Debbie Wisemen
Editing by Simon Webb
Distributed by Lionsgate
Release date(s) Flag of the United Kingdom August 24, 2007
Running time 110m 26s (cinema) / 188m (television)
Country Flag of the United Kingdom United Kingdom
Language English
Allmovie profile
IMDb profile

Flood is a 2007 disaster film directed by Tony Mitchell. It stars Robert Carlyle, Jessalyn Gilsig, David Suchet and veteran British actor Tom Courtenay, and is loosely based on the 2002 novel of the same name by Richard Doyle.

Contents

[edit] Plot

The film depicts a devastating flood which strikes London when the Thames Barrier is overwhelmed by a huge surge of water. A storm surge travels between the U.K and mainland Europe, raising sea level and coinciding with the spring tide.

Rob Morrison (Carlyle), the head of Defiant Engineering, is called to the Thames Barrier for a maintenance check. There he meets his ex-wife Sam (Gilsig), the Barrier's Director of Operations. Meanwhile Rob's estranged father Leonard (Courtenay), a professor in meteorology, discovers that a storm which had struck Scotland and originally thought to be heading for Holland has now diverted back towards South East England and London. He predicts that the Thames Barrier will not be able to hold back the immense pressure if the storm surge hits at high tide.

With this information at hand, Rob, Sam and Leonard warn COBRA Supervisor and Met Police Commissioner Patricia Nash (Joanne Whalley) and Deputy Prime Minister Campbell (Suchet) of the imminent danger. However, with only three hours until the surge hits, it may be too late to save the city of London.

The professor tells the authorities that they have until seven o'clock (he briefs them at four o'clock) until six to seven metres of water hit the Thames Barrier. The Deputy Prime Minister activates the flood protocol which will evacuate London. However, millions of people cannot leave the city because of major traffic problems spread throughout the city, so he declares a State of Emergency.

Meanwhile, the surge reaches the Thames Estuary, destroying all land around it. The surge travels at a great speed, so when it reaches the Barrier, it smashes into it, overwhelming it and continues its way up the river into Central London, gathering power as it does.

Sam and Rob have reached the bulkhead of the Barrier when they meet Leonard who is distraught after seeing a crew member - Frank - being impaled by a door handle. Rob tells Sam and his father that they need to jump into the water as the Barrier begins to break up. Only Sam and Rob jump as Leonard says that his plan is madness. Leonard is later picked up by a Search and Rescue unit which takes him to COBRA who has reached higher ground.

The surge continues its way up the river gathering speed and power as it destroys and submerges places such as the O2 Arena and Canary Wharf, killing thousands of people. Sam and Rob have managed to find their way to a sinking ship where Rob finds an inflatable lifeboat. They use it to try and find safer ground. Unluckily, they are caught by the current which drags them into the London Underground.

The wave of water has now passed, and destroyed Tower Bridge, and COBRA has had to cut all electricity and gas lines in case a fire breaks out, adding to the problems in the city. The surge now passes into the residential part of London, flooding homes, flats and other buildings, killing more people as it goes. It manages to find its way into the London Underground where two maintenance workers are found by Rob and Sam with other survivors. On the surface, drains and manholes explode under the pressure of the water that seeps beneath them, sending people and cars into the air. The water continues its way throughout the city until it reaches Big Ben and Westminster.

COBRA, Sam, Rob and Leonard now have to find a way of releasing the water with the outgoing low tide. They open other gates further west to combat the still-moving surge. In order to do this, Leonard has to sacrifice himself to override the manual system in the Barrier as the anti-terrorist system kicks in. The override system is under water, so Leonard runs out of air after he overrides the system, allowing the surge to drain away from London. He, and another 200,000 people lose their lives to the storm surge.

[edit] Cast list

[edit] Production

Flood was filmed on location in London and South Africa.[1] It is notable for the use of intricate production design and special effects in depicting famous London landmarks such as the London Underground, Houses of Parliament and the The O2 being partially submerged under water.

26 studio sets were constructed with built-in water effects to shoot the actors in a wide range of flood sequences. Miniature sets in water tanks were used to shoot larger flooded buildings such as the Thames Barrier, London Underground and car parks. Computer generated visual effects were used to create shots of flooded London by combining actual wide shots of London with digitally created water.

Locations in Cape Town were used for Whitehall, the Scottish coastline, London Underground and the Thames Barrier. Archive footage from the 2004 Boscastle flood in Cornwall was also used.

[edit] Release

The 110m film version was given a limited theatrical release in the UK, premiering on 24 August 2007, and was released on DVD in October 2007. The extended two-part television version was screened on ITV1 on 4 and 5 May 2008.

[edit] References

  1. ^ Disaster movie flood wipes out London. Metro (27-07-2007). Retrieved on 2007-10-07.

[edit] External links

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