The Tunnel

There are times when a less-is-more approach results in gripping entertainment and The Tunnel is one such example.

The Tunnel may be shrouded in blistering embers and fumes, but it never loses sight of the victims and helpers, of whom there are many.

[A] formulaic, but sufficiently diverting thriller...

The film lacks for the methodically escalating stakes that makes the best examples of the genre so entertaining.

Solidly crafted if a bit uninspired, Pål Øie's thriller is like a horizontal, colder, sootier "Towering Inferno" minus the all-star-cast, though their soap-operatics are intact.

I can well imagine a Hollywood remake, though this might well accentuate the existing tendency to cliche and a glib ending.

The Tunnel starts out strong, sticking to the disaster film formula with style and efficient characterization. It stumbles midway through, however, falling victim to pacing issues and mawkishness that undermine the promise of the first half.

By highlighting the heroism and keeping things focused on the people rather than the spectacle, “The Tunnel” gives its audience something authentic to latch onto and root for.

The film's pace ramps up and you'll be almost as sweaty-palmed and panicked as the poor folks trapped in the tunnel.

[A] curiously humdrum disaster film about an accident in a mountain highway tunnel that traffics in clichés and coincidences more than excitement.