I still don't understand how people get on here and write reviews about movies, with statements like wasted actors talent, campy, don't you understand this movie was made in 1972 there was no CGI and copying movie like it's done today, this was an original and won awards and was up for many more nominations, these actors weren't wasted they were continuing to develop their craft. I saw this as a 6yr old and still remember it today on New Years Eve as I just watched it this morning bringing back so many memories that made me the movie buff I am. I never forgot it from the wonderful soundtrack (Oscar winning ) and the cinematography (Oscar winning) which was earned the old fashioned way imagination, not by some computer generated initiative. I love movies today but I still remember good movies and how they were made in yesteryear also. It's kinda like comparing atheletes when people(younger people especially) when they say Lebron is better than Oscar R or Michael J, the players are all great in their time, if either Michael or Oscar were here today they would still be GREAT, as Lebron is today, but to say he is better is foolish, This a Great Movie today as it was in 1973. PERIOD!!

This is the ultimate disaster movie with a huge boat, a huge cast, a huge tidal wave, but most importantly, a huge heart. There have been lots of jokes in regards to the weight gain by Shelley Winters in the part she plays here, and until I first saw this, I had the impression that she played a stereotypical nagging Jewish wife. Wrong! Her character is the heart and soul of the film, a far cry from her clinging wife and mother in "The Diary of Anne Frank" and her extremely abusive, racist mother in "A Patch of Blue".

Several years before the success of "The Love Boat" on T.V., this all-star cast disaster epic was the big box office smash of its year, and seeing it 40+ years later, it is easy to understand why. The film is entertaining from start to finish: nail biting, sentimental, funny, and even tragic. There's no iceberg, torpedo or giant sea monster, just an act of God standing in the way of this "Grand Hotel of the Sea" getting to its destination.

The actual tidal wave occurs fairly early in the film, leaving only enough time for character development and brief plot to establish what is going on in these people's lives at the time. Jack Albertson and Shelley Winters play an aging Jewish couple on their way to Israel to meet their grandson, while Ernest Borgnine and Stella Stevens play a trashy rich couple who do nothing but verbally spar, making them a modern version of "Dinner at Eight's" Wallace Beery and Jean Harlow. Stevens gets in a few good potshots at both hubby Ernest and portly Shelley, rudely pushing her way in front of Winters to climb up the Christmas tree impromptly used as a ladder while shouting, "I'm going first, before old fat-ass gets stuck." Carol Lynley is a shy, mousy lounge singer, first heard singing the film's Oscar Winning song "The Morning After", made famous as a hit record by Maureen McGovern. Pamela Sue Martin and Eric Shea are a young sister and brother traveling alone, while Gene Hackman is a rather embittered Reverend. Others aboard include Roddy McDowall, Red Buttons and Arthur O'Connell, but with too many subplots going on, a few of the stars had to suffer in the final print. There's a bit of camp with the casting of a pre-"Airplane!" Leslie Nielsen as the ship's captain who is deadly serious here without being called Shirley.

The world of an upside down ship is a scary one, especially when surrounded by thousand miles of ocean and no realistic way to get to the top to summon help which may not be forthcoming. The human drama and suspense of being trapped in an enclosed space make for riveting storytelling. There are some shocking fatalities, and several of them are "time to reach out for a Kleenex" moments. The rapport between Hackman and Winters grows as the desperation increases, making for a touching relationship between strangers. Winters was a good sport about this film, and later in her life, poo-pooed the 1997 "Titanic" by publicly declaring, "I prefer 'The Poseidon Adventure'".

Having become a perennial favorite for midnight showings on New Year's Eve and private viewings of the film's cult fans, "The Poseidon Adventure" has survived a wretched sequel and an unnecessary remake. The film spawned tons of imitators and a series of disaster films that for the most part pale in comparison. If you are to see only one disaster movie in your life, it should be this one. Skip towering infernos, exploding blimps, big buses and tampered with rollercoasters. The adventure starts here, and Poseidon's name is stamped all over it.

I will never forget the 18th of February 2022, the day that Storm Eustace caused untold mayhem, what better way to end a day of storm, flying debris and heavy rain, then with The Poseidon adventure.

A fabulous cruise liner tips over, none brave people battle for survival in the midst of terror and low odds of survival.

It is still so incredibly watchable, and still one of the best disaster movies of all time. It still manages to have you on the edge of your seat, it's packed with atmosphere, and really does manage to make you feel very claustrophobic.

Quality acting throughout, Gene Hackman, Shelley Winters, Roddy McDowall all great, for me it's the duo of Stella Stevens and Ernest Borgnine that I have always adored, I love The Rogo's.

I've never seen the remake, so can't comment on that, I can't imagine it being a patch on this one.

Big budget, big stars, this movie remains a classic, 9/10.