The 33

The whole world held its breath five years ago when 33 Chilean miners were stranded for nearly three months deep in a copper mine. First thought to be lost, through the combined efforts of a tireless government official, the miners' frantic family members and determined rescue teams, the men were located and saved to the joy of those watching around the world. A film of the event was inevitable, though it's not surprising that the story's scope didn't prompt a 10-episode Netflix series or, at least, an investigative documentary that would examined the mining company's culpability in the collapse. They, according to a title at the film's conclusion, got off without liability despite the obvious lapse in mine safety that the film exposes.

Instead "The 33" frames the story as old-school Hollywood disaster movie. Not that such an approach is bad. With a first-rate cast, a well-constructed script and suspenseful direction, the story unfolds as a stirring emotional juggernaut. To her credit Mexican director Patricia Riggen involves the audience at every turn of this harrowing story, whether it's the sequence when a rock double the size of the Empire State Building blocks the only way out for the miners, or the tense moments when the first of the miners - an expecting father who's the newbie amongst the 33 - is lifted up in a makeshift elevator.

The script, by Mikko Alanne, Craig Borten, and Michael Thomas, attempts to offer a cross-section of the many lives touched on by the disaster and does so adequately enough, occasionally slipping into familiar tropes to get their point across. One stranded miner has a wife and a mistress who fight throughout in a clich� comic manner; another must come to terms with his estrangement from his sister, passionately played by Juliette Binoche (who replaced Jennifer Lopez). A third - the group's foreman played by Lou Diamond Phillips - beats himself up for not being more demanding in dealing with management about safety issues. They may be obvious, but are deftly integrated.

Leading the 33 is Antonio Banderas as Mario Sep�lveda, who reluctantly took command of the group at their darkest moment and became a media star once daily broadcasts from down below are broadcast worldwide. Banderas not only offers hope to his fellow miners but he also elevates the film with a forceful, nuanced performance. The media turns him into a hero (Super Mario he was nicknamed) but, to some of his fellow miners, he's a grandstanding braggart out to profit for his role in the disaster. When confronted by this, Banderas shows a potent mix of humility and diplomacy as helps diffuse a volatile situation. A similar situation emerges above as the Chilean mining minister Laurence Golborne (a wonderfully effective Rodrigo Santoro) is touched by the plight of the miner's families and pushes for the rescue mission to continue. Perhaps it wasn't as simple as this, but it's a movie-ish device that works.

What Riggen does best throughout the film is keep it from slipping into Movie-of-the-Week territory. She breathlessly stages the mine collapse, nicely develops the growing camaraderie between the miners (a scene where Banderas must ration what little milk they have is grimly humorous), and, finally, earn tears when the miners are released and the numerous back-stories are concluded. She even includes a lovely sequence of magical realism in which one miner imagines a lavish feast where they are joined by family and friends that offers a much-needed release to the grim story. Some have criticized the film for not being made in Spanish, which no doubt would have made it more authentic; still for a Hollywood product, "The 33" is compelling, old-fashioned fare that's most respectful of its titular characters. When the real survivors appear on a beach in the film's final moments, it's difficult not to be touched.