'Thirteen Lives' review: Ron Howard's riveting survival drama

WHAT IT’S ABOUT In June 2018, 12 Thai boys from the Wild Boars soccer team joined their coach for a field trip to Tham Luang Nang Non, a cave in Chiang Rai province. What should have been an afternoon jaunt became a struggle for survival when an unseasonably early monsoon flooded the cave and trapped the team in a chamber more than two miles from the entrance. News coverage of the boys' plight launched an international rescue effort that seemed hopeless — until a group of divers came up with a highly original plan.

“Thirteen Lives” is a dramatized re-enactment of that rescue mission directed by Ron Howard from a script by William Nicholson (“Gladiator”). The cast includes Colin Farrell, Viggo Mortensen, Joel Edgerton and Tom Bateman.

MY SAY Given its marquee director, strong cast and picturesque locale, why has “Thirteen Lives” received such a short theatrical release before shifting to Prime Video? Was it rushed out by MGM to get ahead of Netflix’s upcoming series, “Thai Cave Rescue?” This riveting adventure-survival drama is definitely worthy of the big screen, but it should also keep you glued to the smaller one for its 147-minute running time.

“Thirteen Lives” is less a character-driven story than a procedural; its focus is on logistics, details and problem-solving. For starters, it vividly illustrates why the kids couldn’t simply swim out of a cave they walked into: We see several Thai Navy SEALs struggle with bulky oxygen tanks as they navigate impossibly narrow canals and fight against powerful currents — only to make incremental progress. Two SEALs died as a result of their rescue efforts; the film is dedicated to them.

Equally fascinating are the attempts aboveground to divert the relentless rainwater away from the cave and into the fields of local farmers who — in Dunkirk-like solidarity — agree to let their crops be ruined. “For the boys,” says one. Meanwhile, the days drag by and parents begin to fear the worst.

It's more than a week until two British divers, the amiable John Volanthen (Farrell) and his surly friend Rick Stanton (Mortensen), finally locate the boys, who have been keeping fear and hunger at bay by meditating with their coach (James Teeradon Supapunpinyo). The divers lift the boys' hopes, but the truth is that there's still no obvious way to extract these untrained, inexperienced kids. Any misstep or moment of panic while underwater is sure to be fatal. It's the pessimistic Stanton (a technical adviser on the film) who comes up with a brilliant, if desperate, idea.

If you don’t remember how the rescue went down, stop reading now — it’s a surprise worth saving. Here's the spoiler: With help from Dr. Richard “Harry” Harris (Edgerton), an Australian diver who is also an anesthesiologist, the rescuers plan to drug the kids with ketamine and haul them out as dead weight — "like packages,” says Rick. It’s easier said than done, of course, and each life will depend on the smallest details. The final rescue scenes, expertly directed by Howard, are a mix of tension, horror and jubilation.

“Thirteen Lives” falls slightly short in the emotional department; it's focused on what and how, rather than who. We don’t get very close to our mostly British heroes, all stiff-upper-lip types save for the young diver Chris Jewell (Bateman), whose mission goes harrowingly awry. That said, “Thirteen Lives” is a gripping and suspenseful experience. It'll have you holding your breath until the very end.

BOTTOM LINE Ron Howard vividly re-creates a real-life story of heroism and sacrifice.

By Rafer Guzmán

rafer.guzman@newsday.com@raferguzman