Dustin Hoffman

Sharon Stone

Samuel L. Jackson

Peter Coyote

Liev Schreiber

Queen Latifah

Marga Gómez

Huey Lewis

Bernard Hocke

James Pickens Jr.

Michael Keys Hall

Ralph Tabakin

Barry Levinson

Adam Greenberg

Paul Attanasio

Andrew Wald

Stephen Hauser

Michael Crichton

Stu Linder

Elliot Goldenthal

Jim Magdaleno

Norman Reynolds

Jonathan McKinstry

Mark W. Mansbridge

Anne Kuljian

James W. Tyson

Ellen Chenoweth

Gloria Gresham

Tim Rigby

Lisa McCullough

Kurt Wimmer

Robert Bardy

Michael Kory

Jeff Lin

Gary Capo

Charles John Bukey

Mo Henry

Nicole Herr

Michael Silvers

Catherine Childers

Heather Harris

John Quaglia

Richard Beggs

Brian Hamill

Robert Ryan

Allen D. Easton

P. Scott Sakamoto

Julie Pitkanen

Jason Wardle

Walter F. Hyneman

Fernando Benítez

Richard O. Helmer

Carlos Arguello

June Westmore

Claire Sanfilippo

Mary Helen Leasman

Aaron Dem

Marietta Carter-Narcisse

Tricia Sawyer

Ian Fox

Steven C. McGee

Karen Klein

Mark Daily

Rod Basham

Jeffrey A. Okun

Mark Boley

Allan A. Apone

J.R. Grubbs

Tim Holland

Ronald A. Miller

Gary Thomas

Tom Johnson

Brad Emmons

Jana Vance

Adrienne Manhan

Lydia Bottegoni

Tim Gibbons

Michael White

Lindakay Brown

Marian Wilde

Ronnie Rondell Jr.

Daryl Tucker

Peter Giuliano

Patricia Churchill

William Beck

Joseph D. Urbanczyk

Nori Honda

Kurt E. Soderling

Sean Mannion

John Charles Kohn

Brett C. Smith

Edward J. Protiva

Bill 'Kauhane' Hoyt

Alex Daniels

Lee Garibaldi

W. Steven Graham

David Gabrielli

Blair Daily

Robert Elhai

James Conroy

Rodney Hope

Billy R. Brashier

Christine Dye

Mark Scoon

Tommy Tancharoen

Greg Banta

John Moses

Marvin Salsberg

Kent Sparling

Science Fiction

Mystery

Thriller

Sphere

Warner Bros. Pictures

Punch Productions

Baltimore Pictures

Constant c Productions

United States of America

English

space marine

based on novel or book

ocean

extraterrestrial technology

paranoia

time travel

time bomb

alien

psychologist

ocean floor

deepsea

spaceship crash

Interesting idea but poorly executed and overly long. Acting was okay but nobody really stood out. At least some of the effects weren't too bad for 1998. I actually back in the day read the novel but don't remember anything from it, just know this adaptation was pretty different. **2.5/5**

Kamurai

Great watch, would watch again, and do recommend.

I feel like I have a thing for the isolationism of deep sea bases.  "Bioshock", "Deep Blue Sea", "The Meg", "Underwater", "The Abyss": just the idea of being far away from any help in the most dangerous living conditions possible on the planet.

Add in a mysteriously time traveling alien sphere and let bake in the survival situation where people are losing their minds and things keep manifesting into existence.

It's a little insane, but it has a quality cast, plot, and some great action for all the characters being a bunch of nerds.

**_The power to actualize your thoughts and fears_**

A huge spacecraft at the bottom of the Pacific ocean with a strange, humming sphere found inside. A team of scientists are sent down to investigate – a psychologist (Dustin Hoffman), a mathematician (Samuel L. Jackson), a biochemist (Sharon Stone) and an astrophysicist (Liev Schreiber). Two notable characters at the station on the ocean floor are played by Peter Coyote and Queen Latifah. Mystery and (some) horror ensue.

Based on Michael Crichton's 1987 novel, "Sphere" (1998) intermixes elements of other scif-fi flicks, like "Forbidden Planet," "Solaris," "Alien," "Galaxy of Terror" and "The Abyss." Like those movies, the plot involves a small group of people who are isolated from society and encounter the unknown. The theme is the actualization of one's thoughts and fears and the potential for good or, more likely, bad that comes with it. Are we mature enough as a species to handle such power?

Of course, we already have this power, just not to the degree depicted in the story (seemingly). Anything important that we do, whether productive or destructive, is formulated within first and then manifests without, like a song or a book or a loving relationship. If we truly knew the power at our disposal we'd hardly be able to sleep at night we'd be so excited!

The first hour or so is quite good because the film definitely makes you feel like you're at the bottom of the ocean. The mystery is engaging and the actors formidable. Unfortunately, some parts of the second half don't work so well, which destroys the illusion of the movie. As far as the ending goes, it features tricky material that's not easy to pull off. The fact that it's somewhat successful is largely due to having great actors.

Despite the murkiness of parts of the second half, the theme is great. This isn't a slasher film in space, like "Alien," and refuses exploitive thrills, like "Galaxy of Terror." Rather, it shoots for well-acted drama and thought-provoking ideas. However, there are some harrowing aspects, like the jelly fish sequence.

While many lambaste "Sphere," it wasn't the box office dog you might think in light of the bad press. It made $37 million (in 1998 dollars) in the USA alone, which is hardly a clunker. The problem was that it cost over twice that to make.

It runs 2 hours, 14 minutes.

GRADE: B-

QUESTIONS ON THE THEME (***Don't read further unless you've seen the film***)

Why is it that the dark side of the human subconscious is empowered by the alien technology/entity? Why not the positive side? The four scientists (and the others) strike me as quality souls who pretty much have it together. While not perfect human specimens, they're strong people who have their phobias and destructive emotions under control. So why aren't their GOOD, PRODUCTIVE thoughts/desires manifested rather than the bad? I could see if the story took place in a prison and the characters were pieces of sheet, but that's not the case.

Also, who or what does the sphere represent? The Fountain of Life (Psalm 36:9)?

Sphere (1998) - Trailer HD 1080p

Sphere (2/10) Movie CLIP - A Perfect Sphere (1998) HD

Sphere( 1998)

Terror can fill any space.

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A review by JPV852

Written by JPV852 on Mon Jul 20 2020

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