Namor the Sub-Mariner
Genre: Action/Superhero/Fantasy
Director: JC Chandor
Writer: John Malone
Based on Marvel Comics characters
Cast: Alden Ehrenreich, Tom Hanks, John Hawkes, Peter Weller, Samara Weaving, Logan Browning, Jay Ryan, Casper Van Dien, Tracy Letts, Isaiah Washington, Andrew Koji
Plot: An Icelandic whaling boat closes in on an endangered North Atlantic right whale. As the crew readies the boat’s harpoon, a violent storm suddenly emerges over the ship. The whale gets away as large waves tip the boat over. The whalers cling to an emergency raft as their boat sinks beneath the waves. Namor McKenzie (Alden Ehrenreich) emerges from the water and hovers above them. The storm dies down and the waves calm. He uses his powers to push the raft along the right current to take them back to shore. The men thank Namor for saving their lives. Namor tells them that he didn’t save them and that next time they try to kill whales he will let the sea consume them. Namor dives back into the water, swimming at superhuman speeds down to his underwater kingdom, Atlantis.
On Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., Senator Philip Voigt (Tracy Letts) oversees a hearing regarding the attack on the USS Gabe Jones, the recovery of the USS Redmond and the discovery of the underwater civilization of Atlantis. There to give testimony on the events are Admiral Everett Porter (Peter Weller), Leonard McKenzie (Tom Hanks) and Caleb Alexander (Isaiah Washington). Once the basic outline of events are recapped, Voigt begins asking them about Namor, the supposed Prince of Atlantis. All three men give brief fragmented answers, all clearly trying to protect Namor in their own way. Voigt becomes angry during the hearing and demands some better answers or he’ll have them all thrown in jail. Porter chimes in again. He tells Voigt that there is an underwater civilization, but he is unsure about the exact coordinates due to malfunctioning equipment from storms. Leonard states that he is thankful to finally be saved from the wreckage of the USS Redmond, but he does not know anything about Atlantis or the so-called Namor. Caleb doesn’t have much to add other than that he thinks everybody should probably leave Atlantis alone unless they want to deal with another Kraken. Voigt calls an end to the hearing, but closes by stating that they have only scratched the surface of the Atlantean problem and that he does not trust some civilization they know nothing about to remain willingly peaceful.
After the hearing, Leonard takes a small boat out to sea to see his son. Namor emerges from the waters, leaping out of the water and onto the boat in one smooth movement. Leonard sits on the edge of the boat and tells Namor about how fishing with his father when he was young is what gave him his love of the sea. Namor uses his powers to have fish jump up out of the water all around the boat. Leonard jokes that Namor’s abilities would take all the fun out of fishing.
Meanwhile in the north Atlantic Ocean, Lt. Todd Arliss (Jay Ryan) is helping a private military group called Condor led by Jake Malloy (Casper Van Dien) find Atlantis for their benefactor. Arliss orders the ship to stop. He says that the radar readings look familiar and believes they are close to Atlantis. Arliss gets into a dive suit and is prepared to go into the water to check things out when the ship is suddenly attacked by Attuma (Andrew Koji), a rogue Atlantean warrior. Attuma attacks Arliss with his three-bladed sword. Arliss falls to the deck of the ship. Malloy fires at Attuma with a high-tech gun that fires mechanical claws at Attuma that dig into his blue skin. Attuma rips them off and warns the group to stay away from Atlantis or he won’t be alone next time before diving into the dark waters. Malloy and his men inspect Arliss’ wound. When they find that he has no feeling in his lower body, Malloy suspects that Attuma severed Arliss’ spinal cord. Arliss is medevac'd away from the ship and to a military hospital back in the United States.
In Atlantis, Namor is informed of Attuma’s attack on a ship. He asks Lady Dorma (Samara Weaving) to have Attuma brought before his throne to answer for his actions. Attuma is soon brought to Namor by large squids holding him against his will. Namor asks Attuma why he attacked the human ship. Attuma says that the ship was dangerously close to Atlantean waters, so he wanted to scare them off. Namor says that scaring them off is one thing, but physically attacking them with weapons is another thing entirely. Attuma, annoyed, nods to Namor, who tells the squids to let Attuma go. Attuma tells Namor that he misses the old war-hungry Namor before he developed a soft-spot for the surface dwellers. Namor stands up from the throne, ready for battle. Dorma gets between the two, insisting that the two shouldn’t fight. Attuma vows to leave Atlantis and start his own city. He tries to convince Dorma to come with him, but she feels that she must be loyal to what Thakorr would have wanted her to do. Dorma asks Namor if he really wants one of his best warriors leaving the kingdom. Namor, having grown colder as King of Atlantis, states that he doesn’t want any warrior who won’t listen to him, and that what is best for Atlantis is trying to avoid the surface dwellers as much as possible.
Jake Malloy reports to Senator Voigt, telling him that they must be close to Atlantis’ location now since they were attacked by an Atlantean. Voigt asks if it was Namor, but Malloy shakes his head. Voigt tells Malloy that now that they have the general location of Atlantis, he needs Malloy to capture a living Atlantean specimen so that Dr. Dorcas can study them. Malloy leaves to get his unit ready for a deepwater mission.
Leonard McKenzie is working with Caleb Alexander and his daughter Carrie (Logan Browning) to help conserve marine life in the Atlantic Ocean. Carrie dives into the waters to swim with the beluga whales and feed them fish. Namor swims up to join her. Carrie hugs him, stating that it has been too long. Namor assures her that the beluga population is thriving now, so she won’t need to keep checking up on them. Caleb interrupts, commenting that he thinks his daughter was more interested in catching up with Namor. Namor leaps from the water onto the boat and gives Leonard a hug. Namor confesses that he doesn’t always think he has what it takes to rule a kingdom, explaining Attuma’s exit. Leonard says he is sure Namor will do fine, but reminds him to keep his temper in check.
Admiral Porter visits Todd Arliss in the hospital and asks what he thought he was doing out there. Arliss, paralyzed from the waist down, lashes out at Porter for ever letting Namor leave the USS Gabe Jones alive. Porter tells Arliss that Namor didn’t do anything wrong other than being born different. Arliss yells at Porter to leave him alone and that he will find a way to make Namor pay for what has happened to him.
On the outskirts of Atlantis, Dorma is attacked by Malloy and his team. She is captured in an electrified net and knocked unconscious. In the process of being abducted, Dorma drops her necklace. Malloy and his team take her away in a submarine. Namor comes looking for Dorma, but only finds her necklace. He senses something is wrong and sends fish and other marine life out to look for Dorma. He frantically swims around looking for her as well. Eventually Namor learns that Dorma was taken by surface dwellers. A school of clown fish arrange themselves in a shape that forms the logo for Condor. Angered that Dorma was abducted, Namor proceeds to smash several ancient pillars in Atlantis. Once he composes himself a bit, Namor triggers a distress beacon given to him by Admiral Porter. When Porter arrives, Namor pleads with him to find out who took Dorma from Atlantis and where they are keeping her. Porter asks how Namor knows she was taken by surface dwellers, and Namor replies that a swordfish told him. Porter promises to bring Leonard and the Alexanders out to see how any of them might be able to help.
In an underground lab, Dorma is kept in a dehydration tank to keep all water and moisture away from her so that her Atlantean abilities are limited. The lab is filled with other living samples of exotic aquatic life. While Malloy taunts her, Dr. Lemuel Dorcas (John Hawkes) arrives and tells Malloy to leave. He calmly tells Dorma that he simply needs to run some tests on her and then she will be released back into the ocean. Dorcas inserts a large needle into Dorma’s containment unit, taking blood and DNA samples from the weakened Atlantean. Dorcas then has Todd Arliss brought into the lab. Arliss demands to know why an Atlantean is there. Dorcas tells Arliss to relax and asks him if he’d like to be able to walk again. Arliss says he would give anything to do so. Dorcas has Arliss strapped onto a table and explains that he is going to splice his DNA with Atlantean DNA as well as that of a tiger shark. Dorcas further explains that the procedure is going to hurt - a lot - but that it should cure his paralysis and then some. Arliss passes out from pain during the procedure. Dorma weakly demands to know why Dorcas is doing all of this. Dorcas explains that the ocean is a wonderful thing and there are a lot of qualities to ocean life that he thinks can enhance life on the surface - even if it takes genetic modification to make it happen.
Admiral Porter brings Leonard and the Alexanders out to see Namor. Namor asks for their help to find who took Dorma from Atlantis. Porter says he will talk to some of his contacts in the military branches to see if they know anything. Namor draws the symbol the fish made for him. Porter immediately recognizes it as the emblem worn by mercenaries working for Condor. Porter says that Senator Voigt happens to be on their board of directors. Leonard bristles at the name Voigt after his experience at the senate hearing. Porter says he is going to see Voigt for some answers to get to the bottom of things. Carrie asks Namor how things are going in Atlantis. He confesses that things have been rough since Dorma was taken, but he must do whatever he can to bring her back and protect his people. Carrie gives Namor a kiss on the cheek and wishes him good luck.
When Namor returns to Atlantis, he has found that Attuma has returned and has begun rallying the citizens of the city against Namor. Attuma tells everyone that Namor has become soft and weak and is no longer able to defend Atlantis from the service world with Lady Dorma’s abduction being evidence of this. The chatter of discontentment grows louder until Namor finally snaps and yells, creating an underwater shockwave that silences everyone. Attuma leaves Atlantis once again, with many Atlanteans choosing to follow him. Namor straps on his war armor, vowing to defend Atlantis single-handedly from invaders.
Arliss wakes up to find that he has begun to mutate. His teeth have grown sharper and more shark-like, his skin has gotten thicker, and a fin has begun to grow from his head down his spine. Arliss gets up and begins trashing the room in a rage. Dorcas enters the room, proud of his work. Arliss angrily demands to know what Dorcas has done to him. Dorcas says he did exactly what he promised, pointing out that Arliss is up and walking again. Dorcas then takes Arliss to a meeting room where Senator Voigt and Malloy are waiting. Malloy, ever the soldier, is silent unless asked a direct question. Dorcas presents Arliss to Voigt, who is impressed by the military applications of such a hybrid creature. Voigt asks what Dorcas will need to create more, and Dorcas replies that he would need more Atlantean test subjects and more willing soldiers. Voigt asks Malloy to prepare Arliss, codename: Tiger Shark, for another mission to the depths of Atlantis.
When Senator Voigt returns to his office on Capitol Hill, he is confronted by Admiral Porter, who demands to know what Voigt is up to with Condor. Voigt promises to tell him, but that his office is not the best place. They arrange to meet by the Washington Monument later that night. That night, Porter sits on a bench overlooking the Reflecting Pool. He looks at his watch as it turns over to midnight. Suddenly, Porter is shot dead from sniper fire. Off in the distance, Malloy packs up his sniper rifle and leaves the area.
In the Atlantic Ocean, Malloy prepares to dive back down to Atlantis by climbing into an advanced version of the Newtsuit designed by Caleb Alexander. Arliss is with him, having mutated into even more of a shark-like creature, with few traces of his original humanity left. When Malloy calls him by his name, he rejects it and insists on being called Tiger Shark. Malloy and Tiger Shark dive into the water, traveling to the bottom of the ocean to abduct more Atlantean test subjects, but they find Atlantis deserted aside from Namor sitting on his throne. Malloy asks if they should abandon the mission until they can find the rest of the fish people, but Tiger Shark insists that Namor is stronger than the average Atlantean so his DNA must be more valuable. At first they think Namor doesn’t see them as he has shown no movement or response. As they creep closer, Namor suddenly jolts to life. He swims at Malloy, grabbing him. Namor drags Malloy down into a nearby trench, deeper and deeper, until the pressure causes Malloy’s suit to implode in on itself, crushing Malloy to death. Namor is then attacked by the monstrous Tiger Shark, who tries to bite him. Namor manages to hold Tiger Shark’s mouth open to prevent the bites. Namor smiles at Tiger Shark, reminding him that he can control sea life. Namor stares at Tiger Shark deep in the eyes. Tiger Shark tries to fight Namor’s control over him, but fails. Namor has a killer whale come by and eat Tiger Shark. Namor then swims toward the east coast of the United States.
Leonard McKenzie and Caleb Alexander are once again called in to testify in front of Senator Voigt. Carrie is forced by security to sit out in the hall until her father is done. Leonard asks why Porter isn’t there as well. Voigt informs them that Admiral Porter died the night before. Leonard asks how, and Voigt is immediately defensive, insisting that it’s his job to ask the questions, not Leonard’s. Leonard becomes angry at Voigt, loudly telling the other figures in the room that Voigt must have had Porter killed because he knows that Porter went to see him yesterday. Leonard then also reveals that Namor is his son and he’s not going to stand idly by while Voigt tries to get the government to declare war against him. Feeling his crimes catching up to him, Voigt pulls out a gun and shoots Leonard in the chest. Caleb tackles Voigt, wrestling the gun away from him.
As Namor approaches the coastline, he brings with him a giant tidal wave that crashes through the east coast. Water levels begin to rise rapidly as Namor makes his way toward Washington, D.C., causing massive flooding. Water begins streaming through the city streets like a river. Everybody at the US Capitol makes their way to the roof of the building as the water levels continue to dangerously climb. With the nation’s leaders all stranded on top of the Capitol, Namor emerges from the waters. Namor sees Carrie and Caleb. He asks them where his father and Admiral Porter are. Carrie informs him that both were killed by Senator Voigt. Namor lets out a yell of “Imperius Rex!” He goes on a rampage, destroying everything in his sight. Dorcas’ lab begins to fill with water from the flooding. Realizing the plan is in shambles, Dorcas begins killing aquatic test subjects one at a time. When he gets to Dorma, she lets out a scream. Namor stops his destruction when he hears the scream. He is able to pinpoint the scream and flies in the direction. Namor finds Dorcas’ lab. He kicks in the door and finds Dorcas about to kill Dorma. Seeing Namor, King of Atlantis, in front of him, Dorcas grabs a syringe and injects himself with a serum derived from octopus DNA. Dorcas’ body begins changing. He wails in pain as suction cups begin sprouting all over his arms. Namor throws his trident at Dorcas, impaling his heart, killing him. Namor then breaks Dorma out from her containment unit. Dorma kisses Namor, but he tells her now is not the time for that. Namor goes back to the Capitol and uses his powers to push all the water back out of the city, back to the rivers and seas it came from. Namor warns the government leaders that any more attacks on Atlantis will be seen as an act of war.
Namor meets with Carrie along the coast before returning to Atlantis. He tells her that even though he cares about her, he feels that he needs to devote his life to Atlantis for the time being now that his only tie to the surface world - his father - is dead. Carrie holds back a tear, asking if she means that little to him. Without responding, Namor walks into the water to return to Atlantis.
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