Another true story is fictionalized for film, and this time it is done with near perfection.  The 2010 Chilean mine collapse made international headlines because thirty-three of the buried miners survived the initial collapse and banded together for seventeen days to survive before they made contact with the world above, and received food, water and medicine.  Even then, it was another two months underground until a rescue could be effected.

Their story is dramatized in this co-production between the U.S. and Chile, directed by Patricia Riggen.  It is Hollywoodized to some degree with Antonio Banderas and Lou Diamond Phillips portraying miners, and with Juliette Binoche, Gabriel Byrne, James Brolin and Bob Gunton in key roles — yet the film remains true to the spirit of the experience. While certain liberties are taken with the facts, especially at the climax when the film neglects to show that rescuers descended into the mine before anyone was brought up to the surface, Riggen’s film details the hell these men endured with empathy and understanding.

As with Bridge of Spies, an historical event is dissected, cleansed and put back together for mass consumption.  One difference is that while Spielberg’s spy story is complex and nuanced, The 33 is relatively straightforward and elemental.  The fears and hopes of the miners are completely understandable and inherently dramatic because any moment may be their last.  And like Apollo 13 and other dramas where the happy outcome is known, it is still a palpable relief as the characters reach safety one by one.  ☆ ☆ ☆ 1/2.  1 December 2015.