deadly voyage film

Log in or sign up for Rotten Tomatoes

Trouble logging in?

By continuing, you agree to the Privacy Policy and the Terms and Policies , and to receive email from the Fandango Media Brands .

By creating an account, you agree to the Privacy Policy and the Terms and Policies , and to receive email from Rotten Tomatoes and to receive email from the Fandango Media Brands .

By creating an account, you agree to the Privacy Policy and the Terms and Policies , and to receive email from Rotten Tomatoes.

Email not verified

Let's keep in touch.

Sign up for the Rotten Tomatoes newsletter to get weekly updates on:

• Upcoming Movies and TV shows
• Trivia & Rotten Tomatoes Podcast
• Media News + More

By clicking "Sign Me Up," you are agreeing to receive occasional emails and communications from Fandango Media (Fandango, Vudu, and Rotten Tomatoes) and consenting to Fandango's Privacy Policy and Terms and Policies . Please allow 10 business days for your account to reflect your preferences.

OK, got it!

Movies / TV

No results found.

• What's the Tomatometer®?
• Login/signup

Movies in theaters

• Opening this week
• Top box office
• Coming soon to theaters
• Certified fresh movies

Movies at home

• Fandango at Home
• Netflix streaming
• Prime Video
• Most popular streaming movies
• What to Watch New

Certified fresh picks

• Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes Link to Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
• The Fall Guy Link to The Fall Guy
• The Last Stop in Yuma County Link to The Last Stop in Yuma County

New TV Tonight

• Interview With the Vampire: Season 2
• After the Flood: Season 1
• Bridgerton: Season 3
• Outer Range: Season 2
• The Big Cigar: Season 1
• Harry Wild: Season 3
• The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon: Season 11.1
• RuPaul's Drag Race: All Stars: Season 9
• Spacey Unmasked: Season 1
• The Killing Kind: Season 1

Most Popular TV on RT

• Dark Matter: Season 1
• Bodkin: Season 1
• Baby Reindeer: Season 1
• A Man in Full: Season 1
• Fallout: Season 1
• Doctor Who: Season 1
• Sugar: Season 1
• The Sympathizer: Season 1
• Blood of Zeus: Season 2
• Them: Season 2
• Best TV Shows
• Most Popular TV
• TV & Streaming News

Certified fresh pick

• Doctor Who: Season 1 Link to Doctor Who: Season 1
• All-Time Lists
• Binge Guide
• Comics on TV
• Five Favorite Films
• Video Interviews
• Weekend Box Office
• Weekly Ketchup
• What to Watch

Spike Lee Movies and Series, Ranked by Tomatometer

Box Office 2024: Top 10 Movies of the Year

Asian-American Native Hawaiian Pacific Islander Heritage

What to Watch: In Theaters and On Streaming

Weekend Box Office Results: Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes Reigns Supreme

Movie Re-Release Calendar 2024: Your Guide to Movies Back In Theaters

• Trending on RT
• Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
• The Last Stop in Yuma County
• Amazon Movies
• TV Premiere Dates

Deadly Voyage

Audience reviews, cast & crew.

Stuart Urban

Kingsley Ofusu

David Suchet

Joss Ackland

Jean-Claude La Marre

Sean Pertwee

• Cast & crew
• User reviews

Deadly Voyage

• Episode aired Jun 15, 1996

When stowaways are found on board a Russian cargo ship, some of the officers and crew decide to dispose of them at sea. The last time they had a stowaway on board, the ship was fined heavily... Read all When stowaways are found on board a Russian cargo ship, some of the officers and crew decide to dispose of them at sea. The last time they had a stowaway on board, the ship was fined heavily and black marks entered into their records, when he made it off the ship into a foreign p... Read all When stowaways are found on board a Russian cargo ship, some of the officers and crew decide to dispose of them at sea. The last time they had a stowaway on board, the ship was fined heavily and black marks entered into their records, when he made it off the ship into a foreign port.

• John Mackenzie
• Nick Davies
• Stuart Urban
• Joss Ackland
• Sean Pertwee
• 11 User reviews
• 2 Critic reviews
• 2 wins & 1 nomination

• (as Adewale)

• Commissioner

• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

Did you know

• Trivia The story of Kingsley Ofosu who hails from Ghana, West Africa.

User reviews 11

• helpless_dancer
• Apr 3, 1999
• June 15, 1996 (United States)
• United States
• Viaje mortal
• British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)
• Home Box Office (HBO)
• See more company credits at IMDbPro

Technical specs

• Runtime 1 hour 30 minutes

Related news

Contribute to this page.

• IMDb Answers: Help fill gaps in our data
• Learn more about contributing

More to explore

Recently viewed

Deadly Voyage (1996) Stream and Watch Online

Want to watch ' Deadly Voyage ' on your TV, phone, or tablet? Searching for a streaming service to buy, rent, download, or view the John Mackenzie-directed movie via subscription can be difficult, so we here at Moviefone want to do the heavy lifting. Below, you'll find a number of top-tier streaming and cable services - including rental, purchase, and subscription alternatives - along with the availability of 'Deadly Voyage' on each platform when they are available. Now, before we get into the various whats and wheres of how you can watch 'Deadly Voyage' right now, here are some finer points about the HBO Films BBC drama flick. Released June 14th, 1996, 'Deadly Voyage' stars Omar Epps , Joss Ackland , Sean Pertwee , Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje The R movie has a runtime of about 1 hr 30 min, and received a user score of 53 (out of 100) on TMDb, which compiled reviews from 10 top users. Interested in knowing what the movie's about? Here's the plot: "When stowaways are found on board a Russian cargo ship some of the officers and crew decide to dispose of them at sea The last time they had a stowaway on board the ship was fined heavily and black marks entered into their records when he made it off the ship into a foreign port" .

'Deadly Voyage' Release Dates

Popular drama movies.

Featured News

Movie Reviews

Follow Moviefone

Latest trailers.

MPAA Rating

Produced by, deadly voyage (1996), directed by john mackenzie.

• AllMovie Rating 6
• User Ratings ( 0 )
• Your Rating
• Overview ↓
• User Reviews ↓
• Cast & Crew ↓
• Releases ↓
• Related ↓

Synopsis by Cavett Binion

Characteristics, related movies.

Deadly Voyage

Film details, brief synopsis, cast & crew, john mackenzie, luka javanovic, david dontoh, wakefield ackuaku, augustus kobina kudmson, brew riverson, technical specs.

Based on the terrifying true story of one ship and the nine stowaways hiding beneath its deck, who dream of finding wealth and happiness in America. But their existence threatens the career of the ship's captain, and when a lack of water forces them out of hiding, they become a problem to the overly ambitious officer; his solution is a very final, deadly one. One by one, the stowaways are to be taken from the ship's hold and slaughtered. The plan of the ship's officers cold-bloodedly proceeds, until one of the stowaways manages to escape. Now, somewhere in the deep bowels of the ship, he runs and hides as armed crew members hunt him down. As long as he is alive, the captain and his crew must take the risk that their plot will be uncovered. They must make him the final victim if they are to put an end to the Deadly Voyage.

Michael Byrne

Tomas lukes, carl antolin, levani ilia volokh, oscar provencal, alex kodela, stephanie cornicard, juliet asante, chiwetel ejiofor, henry nartey, ravil isyanov, sean pertwee, roman varshavsky, adewale akinnuoye-agbaje, andrew divoff, omanza eugene shaw, joss ackland, david suchet, george meyer, maxine burth, jean-claude lamarre, fred abuaku-asare, bradley adams, davies adjei, emmanuel adjetley, dan adjokathcer, adam aldridge, brian aldridge, john allotey, christine allsop, francis annan jr., francis annan, afari annobil, seth ashong, paschal awotwi, ekow baidoo, craig bariwck, constance barzay-browne, orin beaton, erica bensley, dick bernstein, becklyn boateng, adjetey boye, lucy bristow, wendy broom, jaki brown-karman, howard burden, colin callender, johnny carmichael, david carrigan, michael a carter, alan chesters, anthony cleal, ian corbould, paul corbould, cathy cosgrove, richard davies, sam degraft-johnson, bobby dhillon, gillian dodders, martin duncan, simon emanuel, george faber, james foran, simon fraser, kathy friend, roberta gardiner, danny glover, john goldschmidt, constantine gregory, brian hampton, brian harris, verity hawkes, ted hawkins, claire hirsch, simon holland, morgan johnson, dinah logan, kate mackenzie, david marsh, dedo mate-kole, david mellor, james metal, paul minume, caroline moore, charles nettey, clive noakes, robert ote nyansah, terry o'neill, sue parkinson, rob patridge, kieron phipps, fio kojo pobi, michael povey, trevor puckle, tony reading, mickey reeves, george s richardson, franc roddam, terry royce, crispian sallis, sammy seitz, dan shoring, helen smith, sam southwick, eddie stacey, kitty stanbrook, dave stapleton, gail stevens, heather storr, seth tandoh, raphael teiteh, emmanuel tetteh, gary thomas, darkoa tsibu, tony tucker, stuart urban, peter van der puije, graham walker, chris wheeldon, paul wrightson, miscellaneous notes.

Aired in United States June 15, 1996

Aired in United States June 5, 2007

Released in United States on Video November 19, 1996

Budget source: Viva Films 07/11/1994

Estimated budget: $5,000,000

Began shooting November 4, 1995.

Completed shooting January 1996.

Sign Up now to stay up to date with all of the latest news from TCM.

Your Browser is Not Supported

To view this content, please use one of the following compatible browsers:

Safari v11+

Firefox Quantum

Microsoft Edge

Beautiful, interesting, incredible cinema.

DEADLY VOYAGE

When stowaways are found on board a Russian cargo ship, some of the officers and crew decide to dispose of them at sea. The last time they had a stowaway on board, the ship was fined heavily and black marks entered into their records, when he made it off the ship into a foreign port.

Join or Sign In

Sign in to customize your TV listings

By joining TV Guide, you agree to our Terms of Use and acknowledge the data practices in our Privacy Policy .

TV Listings

• Cast & Crew

Deadly Voyage

• 1 hr 32 mins
• Drama, Suspense

Docudrama about stowaways being tracked down---and murdered---aboard a New York-bound freighter from Ghana. Omar Epps, Sean Pertwee. Captain: Joss Ackland. Vlachos: David Suchet. Albert: Jean-Claude LaMarre. Romachenko: Andrew Divoff. John MacKenzie directed.

Loading. Please wait...

My cable/satellite provider:

There are no TV airings over the next 14 days. Add it to your Watchlist to receive updates and availability notifications.

Cast & Crew See All

Kingsley Ofosu

Sean Pertwee

Joss Ackland

Latest news see all, popular movies see all movies.

A Whitewater Romance

Wicked Little Letters

No Time To Die

Trailers & videos.

• 163.216 movies
• 10.371 shows
• 30.253 seasons
• 617.386 actors
• 9.017.539 votes

• Best movies top 250
• Movie updates
• News Updates
• TV Shows updates
• Celebrity News
• Most Popular Celebrities
• Top 100 Celebrities
• Highest Net Worth Celebrities
• Celebrities born today
• On demand News
• Amazon Prime
• BBC iPlayer
• Paramount Plus
• Awards & Events News
• Sundance Film Festival
• Cannes Film Festival
• SXSW Film Festival
• Tribeca Film Festival

• Deadly Voyage

• Cast & crew

Deadly Voyage (1996)

Genre: drama / thriller, duration: 90 minuten, country: united states, directed by: john mackenzie, stars: omar epps , joss ackland and sean pertwee, imdb score: 6,6  (676), releasedate: 14 june 1996.

This movie is not available on US streaming services.

This movie is not available on UK streaming services.

Deadly Voyage plot

On the high seas, the crew of a Russian container ship discovers that there are nine African stowaways on board. When they are discovered, a number of crew members, led by sadistic officer Plesin and boatswain Romachenko, decide to get rid of the nine. Only Kingsley Ofusu survives the massacre and must fend off the murderous crew on the high seas. Based on a true story from 1992.

Actors and actresses

Reviews & comments

• Opinion/Review

E-mail address

No comments are posted yet. Be the first to leave a comment.

Latest News

2024's biggest movies - Everything you need to know about Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F

It's Always Sunny in Philidelphia Streaming UK: How to watch

Mark Wahlberg confirms why he wasn't in Ocean's Eleven

WATCH: The terrifying new trailer for Speak No Evil starring James McAvoy

More to explore.

El Último Elvis

Drama / Music, 2012

Thriller, 2005

Trending Movies

• Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire
• Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
• Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire
• The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare
• Dune: Part Two
• Gojira -1.0
• Mother of the Bride

Trending Shows

• Kimetsu no Yaiba
• Dark Matter
• Maxton Hall - Die Welt zwischen Uns
• Blood of Zeus

Corporate & Media

Realtimes | Publishing Network

• FootballTransfers.com
• FootballCritic.com
• FCUpdate.nl
• FighterFans.com
• MovieMeter.nl
• MovieMeter.com
• MusicMeter.nl
• BoekMeter.nl
• GamesMeter.nl
• WijWedden.net
• Kelderklasse
• Anfieldwatch
• MeeMetOranje.nl

About MovieMeter

MovieMeter aims to be the largest, most complete movie archive with reviews and rankings, in the World. Our team of journalists delivers the latest news for movies and TV shows. Click here to read more about us .

Social media

• MovieMeterReviews
• moviemeter__
• @MovieMeter_

Popular top lists

• Top 250 best movies of all time
• Top 250 best scifi movies of all time
• Top 250 best thriller movies of all time
• Top 250 best action movies of all time
• Top 100 best movies released in the last 3 years
• Top 50 best family movies of all time

© 2024 MovieMeter B.V.

News | HBO’S `DEADLY VOYAGE’ AMBITIOUSLY SHEDS LIGHT…

Share this:.

• Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on X (Opens in new window)
• Click to print (Opens in new window)
• Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
• Restaurants, Food and Drink
• Entertainment
• Immigration
• Sports Betting

News | HBO’S `DEADLY VOYAGE’ AMBITIOUSLY SHEDS LIGHT ON A GLOBAL PROBLEM

Eight stowaways, fleeing the tropics of Africa for the “promised land” of New York, are caught at sea by the crew of a troubled freighter whose captain and crew face heavy fines if stowaways are found aboard.

But there’s a way out–not for the stowaways, but for the crew.

Murder. One by one.

And the most horrifying thing about this maritime thriller, “Deadly Voyage,” premiering at 7 p.m. Saturday on HBO, is that it actually happened.

“That’s what got me into the film,” said Omar Epps, the “Higher Learning” star who plays Kingsley Ofusu, the only survivor of the slaughter. “It’s a true story. It’s different when it’s a great idea, but it’s fiction. This is living history. That gave me the strength and the focus to do this role.”

Actor Danny Glover, who participated in the film as executive producer, had similar feelings:

“You’d think this was something that might have happened 50 years ago or some other time before that. But this was just four years ago. It’s amazing, mind-boggling.”

The ship involved was Russian–the MC Ruby. British actor Joss Ackland, who was the villain in Glover’s action/thriller hit “Lethal Weapon 2,” is the heavy here as the ship’s aging, alcoholic captain.

Despite their adversarial roles on screen, he and Glover are fast friends.

“He’s a wonderful man,” said Glover. “A very lovely man.”

David Suchet, known to PBS “Mystery” audiences as Agatha Christie’s famous Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot, plays Viachos, a shipping line official who unknowingly precipitates the murders by clamping down hard on stowaway violations with the threat of huge fines and is later appalled at the consequences of his get-tough policy.

Jean-Claude LaMarre, of “Dead Presidents,” plays Epps’ brother and Sean Pertwee, of “Blue Juice,” is a boxer who joins the stowaways. The rest of the black cast is Ghanaian.

Stories not often told

This is the second based-on-fact movie HBO has produced in collaboration with the BBC. The first, last year’s grim “The Affair,” counted Harry Belafonte as executive producer and dealt with the actual story of a black American serviceman during World War II who was hanged when the husband of his English lover insisted he be prosecuted for rape.

“These aren’t stories that often sell tickets in the theater,” Glover said, “but they’re certainly stories that hopefully bring us a little closer to what we are, and who we should be, as human beings.”

“Deadly Voyage” was filmed aboard a ship moored at the Takoradi Docks in Ghana, on Africa’s tropical Atlantic coast.

“The climate was almost unbearable,” said Epps. “But it was one of the most beautiful places I’ve ever seen in my life, and I was doing one of the greatest films I’ll ever be in. When times got hard, I would tell the other cast members, `Listen. After each take we get to go up and have some water or drink some juice and get some fresh air. We’re telling a true story. There are still some people whose spirits linger on in this ship. This is nothing compared to what they went through.’ That’s what kept me going.”

The actual stowaways hid out in a main hold of the freighter, atop a huge stack of cocoa bean bags. After they were discovered, they were put in a dark vertical shaft used for storing heavy anchor chain. Re-creating that narrow space was the only instance in which a sound stage was used instead of the interior of the ship.

Reasons remain the same

The stowaways were ordinary men, most of them with families, hoping to get to America and find work. One hoped to be a cabdriver, another a chef. Epps’ character planned to become an engineer.

“These kids’ intentions were noble,” said Glover. “They’re poetic–and remindful of immigrants who came to this country a century or more ago. They wanted to work for a better life. It’s the same reason why people left England and Germany 200 years ago to come here–for a better life. To work.”

Epps, who is from Brooklyn and lives in Jersey City, acquired an impeccable Ghanaian accent in preparing for the part, but was asked to alter it into a more “British-Ghanaian” one to be more understandable.

The Russian crewmen and actual murderers are portrayed, not as arch, evil fiends, but as ordinary men who reacted wrongly when finding themselves in a desperate situation. The captain faced dismissal if a stowaway was found.

“It wasn’t all racism,” said Epps. “They just wanted to save themselves and they were willing to go to that extent to do so. The fact that they were dealing with Africans made it that much easier to make that decision. I think if they were any other type of stowaways they might have just taken the blow on the cheek or figured out some other way to solve their problem. But this was just, `Let’s get rid of the evidence,’ which happened to be human life.

“It’s a harsh life being a crewman. It’s just like any other work but you’re on a ship, so it’s kind of a city that has its own rules. And when they finish their work, they drink.”

He and Glover both said they hope the film will help Americans better understand the immigration problem.

“That’s a real big picture to look at,” Epps said. “I think the thing I want people to step away with is that this was happening in 1991. It’s not a period piece from the 1800s.

“That will really be a wake-up call. In Third World countries–all over the world, not just Africa–people don’t have the opportunity to live to their fullest potential. But they all have the desire so they take chances risking their lives and their families. There’s so much to be done politically and economically for those countries.”

The captain and first mate of MC Ruby were sentenced to 25 years to life and the rest of the murder crew got 20 to life.

More in News

News | Daywatch: New details emerge in alleged AT&T scheme to bribe House speaker

National News | Michael Cohen will face a bruising cross-examination by Donald Trump’s lawyers at the hush money trial

Health | Prosecutor opposes bill to help moms whose babies are born with drugs in system

Music and Concerts | In memoriam: Musician Stuart Rosenberg turned the world from ‘black and white to Technicolor’

Trending nationally.

• 3 people killed, 12 wounded in mass shooting in south Alabama
• To avoid ‘catastrophic loss,’ Frank Lloyd Wright's Wayfarers Chapel will be dismantled
• More than a dozen gigantic, decades-old invasive carp removed from Colorado pond
• New FAFSA is creating headaches for students and schools
• Tom Holland’s first ‘Romeo & Juliet’ preview canceled amid reports of frenzy behind the scenes

Deadly Voyage

• View history

Deadly Voyage is a 1996 television film directed by John Mackenzie and written by Stuart Urban . Produced by Union Pictures and John Goldschmidt's Viva Films for joint distribution to BBC Films and HBO .

Advertisement

Supported by

TELEVISION;Into Africa to Tell An Unlikely Tale Of Survival

• Share full article

By Howard W. French

• Jan. 14, 1996

AS DANNY GLOVER TALKS, seated in his floating greenroom, the officers' mess of a rust-bucket cargo ship, his eyes seem to mist up and his jaw slackens slightly, the way they do in those police buddy movies when he discovers that his wife or partner is in peril. The display of emotion has nothing to do with the subplots of his latest Hollywood adventure, however; it's about a near lifelong obsession: Africa.

Mr. Glover has just landed in Ghana, flying 7,500 miles (by way of London) from Florida, where he was filming his latest movie, a fishing comedy with Joe Pesci. It is a Friday, and whatever the cost in jet lag, he is working through the fatigue on a dockside set a world away, knowing he must be back on location in the Everglades in just two days.

More used to performing before the cameras, the actor has swooped into West Africa as an executive producer of an HBO-BBC movie based on the true story of eight African stowaways who were slaughtered on the high seas by a Ukrainian crew in 1992. His juices are flowing because for him the film, "Deadly Voyage," scheduled to be shown in September, seems like the ideal vehicle to acquaint an American audience with an Africa it knows little about.

And at this stage of his career, one that has swung pendulum-like between glitzy, high-budget action films like the "Lethal Weapon" series and smaller movies with "a conscience," that is precisely what the 48-year-old actor would like most to achieve.

"This is one of those tales whose ramifications speak to all people who are looking for a better life," Mr. Glover said. "It takes place in the 20th century, but then there are certain images that connect immediately with the Middle Passage," the route used by slave ships sailing between Africa and the colonies.

"African Americans in particular are going to be able to relate this story to a part of their struggle," Mr. Glover said. "At the same time, when we see Senegalese, and Nigerians and Ghanaians on the streets in America, we ask ourselves, How did these brothers get here?"

"Deadly Voyage" is, above all, the story of Kingsley Ofosu, a 22-year-old dockhand and dreamer from Ghana, the sole survivor in a party of Africans who hid themselves in the hold of the MC Ruby, a Bahamian-flagged freighter they believed was heading for America. Six days after the stowaways left the Ghanaian port of Takoradi, their water container broke, and as they moved about the ship in search of something to drink, they were discovered.

What ensued is a tale of cruelty that would be unimaginable if international shipping experts did not say it was commonplace. The Africans were robbed of their savings, interrogated, beaten and held for three days without food in the ship's peak, a tiny space at the front of the vessel where the chain bearing the ship's anchor is stored.

Then came the slaughter.

In twos and threes, the stowaways were called onto the bridge where they were beaten with metal rods, stabbed, shot and thrown overboard somewhere off the coast of Portugal. The last to be called were Ofosu, who had been a sort of leader to the group, and his brother, Albert. When they emerged and saw crewmen in bloodied shirts, the two made a run for it. Albert was felled by the gunfire, but Kingsley managed to escape.

Much of the film revolves around the uncanny survival instincts of Kingsley Ofosu, played by the American actor Omar Epps, who appeared in "Higher Learning," "Major League II" and "Juice."

For three days, the stowaway and the crew played a deadly cat-and-mouse game in the depths of the ship. When MC Ruby reaches the French port of Le Havre, Mr. Ofosu made his break for freedom, shimmying down the ship's side and running straight toward a building marked Police.

Never sure of survival, he had taken pains to hide his personal papers in the ship's hold, hoping that some trace of his ordeal would remain and that his story would be told. This precaution proved to be critical in a case that ultimately turned on the word of a stowaway versus the denials of a crew.

Weeks after the filming began, a French court sentenced the captain and his first mate to life imprisonment and several crew members to 20 years each.

French harbor police made clear that Kingsley Ofosu's tale was unusual on two scores: that he survived, and that his story received any attention. "There are hundreds, thousands of stowaways like Kingsley," said one French officer. "This is the nearest thing to a perfect crime. The sharks clear up all the evidence. And we will never know how many crews have similar killings on their conscience."

If Mr. Glover was drawn to "Deadly Voyage" by its parallels with the slave trade and its horrific conditions, the behavior and fate of the Ukrainian crewmen -- bitter newcomers to the third world -- was just as compelling.

The MC Ruby's crew members had only recently been members of the proud and powerful Soviet merchant marine. Now, in a reshuffling of the international division of labor, they found themselves reduced to low-paid grunts in a system that cared little for their illustrious past.

The film depicts insult being heaped on injury when the crewmen discover that they, not the shipping companies they hire themselves out to, are liable for the stiff fines imposed in European ports on ships bearing illegal immigrants.

"A ship like this is a heap of old rust that hires cheap labor, and it is people of the third world who work as crew," said John Goldschmidt, the film's British producer. "Those people used to be Filipinos and others, but nowadays you find Ukrainians and Russians who are making less money than the dockers in many African ports. In a situation like this, where you stumble upon stowaways, some people will be heroes, others psychotics."

For his cast, Mr. Goldschmidt assembled actors from the global movie business's own informal class system: American stars accustomed to high fees, British actors accustomed to finely hewn small-scale dramas, and third worlders from places as far-flung as Haiti and Nigeria angling for a break.

The result is a diverse international ensemble -- from British actors like David Suchet (familiar to Americans as Hercule Poirot), who plays the shipping-insurance agent, to a crew made up of Russian and Russian-American players and "stowaways" plucked mostly from Ghana's budding local film industry.

ALWAYS NEAR THE FILM'S center, though, is Mr. Epps, a 22-year-old Brooklyn native making his first trip outside of the United States. Wide-eyed and surprisingly shy for someone whose film career has begun to take off so handsomely, Mr. Epps spent time with the real Kingsley Ofosu, who now lives in France, in Mr. Ofosu's native Takoradi to get a sense of the stowaway's life before the shipboard brutality.

"This had started out as just another job for me until I met Kingsley," the actor said over lunch in a hangar-like port warehouse opposite the ship that is standing in for the real MC Ruby. Mr. Epps quickly took to Ghana's spicy cuisine and even picked up a bit of Twi, the country's most widely-spoken language. He talked dreamily of buying land in Ghana and returning often.

Filming in the hold of the ship, the British director John MacKenzie somehow managed to look cool while all around him people sweated through multiple takes of the scene where the stowaways dropped their water tank. He had joined the project on short notice when the original director and screenwriter, Stuart Urban, became ill.

"Not being able to prepare, not knowing the script backward and forward, not having the kind of sense of character you get from being there at the start all make this a peculiar challenge," Mr. MacKenzie said. "If I accepted it, it is because I liked the story -- both the social issues and the action."

What hooked Mr. MacKenzie apparently also worked on executives at HBO, who say they never hesitated when considering the project. Mr. Glover's participation -- vetting the script and participating in casting -- was described by others involved as a "seal of Good Housekeeping." But the actor gives credit to HBO, the American cable programmer, not only for picking up a project that had made the rounds without success in Europe but also for doing much of the filming in Africa.

"HBO did something that is really cutting edge in taking this on," Mr. Glover said. "This is a story that a lot of people would say you could just not tell in a conventional way these days. For them it would just not be romantic enough."

He should know. Other dream projects of his -- from epics based on the Haitian revolution of two centuries ago to tales of West Africa's bloody resistance to colonial penetration -- have been rejected because of doubts over audience interest or concerns about the cost of filming big period pieces.

"I am not sure Hollywood will ever get beyond this sort of thing," Mr. Glover said of a seeming aversion to historic themes involving blacks. "But we have to push for it. Part of that involves doing projects like these, showing that they are viable."

Explore More in TV and Movies

Not sure what to watch next we can help..

Andy Serkis, the star of the earlier “Planet of the Apes” movies, and Owen Teague, the new lead, discuss the latest film in the franchise , “Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes.”

The HBO series “The Sympathizer” is not just a good story, it’s a sharp piece of criticism on Vietnam war movies, our critic writes .

In “Dark Matter,” the new Apple TV+ techno-thriller, a portal to parallel realities allows people to visit new worlds and revisit their own past decisions .

The tennis movie “Challengers” comes to an abrupt stop midmatch, so we don’t know who won. Does that matter? Our critics have thoughts .

If you are overwhelmed by the endless options, don’t despair — we put together the best offerings   on Netflix , Max , Disney+ , Amazon Prime  and Hulu  to make choosing your next binge a little easier.

Sign up for our Watching newsletter  to get recommendations on the best films and TV shows to stream and watch, delivered to your inbox.

Deadly Voyage (1996)

• View history
• 4 Production
• 5 Reception

Overview [ ]

• Omar Epps as Kingsley Ofosu
• Joss Ackland as The Ship's Captain
• Sean Pertwee as Ion Plesin
• David Suchet as Andreas Vlachos
• Andrew Divoff as Romachenko
• Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje as Emmanuel
• Ilia Volok as Petr
• Roman Varshavsky as Yuri
• Chiwetel Ejiofor as Ebow
• Omanza Eugene Shaw as Anduse
• Henry Nartey as Moses
• Oscar Provencal as Charles
• Wakefield Ackuaku as Paul
• David Dontoh as Bob

Production [ ]

Reception [ ], trailer [ ].

• Movies & TV
• Featured Categories
• Action & Adventure

Enjoy fast, free delivery, exclusive deals, and award-winning movies & TV shows with Prime Try Prime and start saving today with fast, free delivery

Amazon Prime includes:

Fast, FREE Delivery is available to Prime members. To join, select "Try Amazon Prime and start saving today with Fast, FREE Delivery" below the Add to Cart button.

• Cardmembers earn 5% Back at Amazon.com with a Prime Credit Card.
• Unlimited Free Two-Day Delivery
• Streaming of thousands of movies and TV shows with limited ads on Prime Video.
• A Kindle book to borrow for free each month - with no due dates
• Listen to over 2 million songs and hundreds of playlists
• Unlimited photo storage with anywhere access

Important:  Your credit card will NOT be charged when you start your free trial or if you cancel during the trial period. If you're happy with Amazon Prime, do nothing. At the end of the free trial, your membership will automatically upgrade to a monthly membership.

Return this item for free

Free returns are available for the shipping address you chose. You can return the item for any reason in new and unused condition: no shipping charges

• Go to your orders and start the return
• Select the return method

Image Unavailable

• Sorry, this item is not available in
• Image not available
• To view this video download Flash Player

Deadly Voyage

• VHS Tape $7.97

Purchase options and add-ons

Product description.

Based on the terrifying true story of one ship and the nine stowaways hiding beneath its decks. When their existence threatens the captain's career, a means must be found of disposing of them - and so the hunt is on. There can be no survivors who might tell the tale of this deadly voyage. "A chilling, nerve-jangling film." (N.Y. Daily News)

Product details

• Aspect Ratio ‏ : ‎ 1.33:1
• MPAA rating ‏ : ‎ R (Restricted)
• Product Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.5 x 5.5 x 0.5 inches; 2.72 ounces
• Media Format ‏ : ‎ NTSC
• Run time ‏ : ‎ 1 hour and 31 minutes
• Release date ‏ : ‎ March 28, 2013
• Actors ‏ : ‎ Joss Ackland, David Suchet, Omar Epps, Sean Pertwee
• Dubbed: ‏ : ‎ Spanish
• Studio ‏ : ‎ HBO
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B007VX02WU
• Country of Origin ‏ : ‎ USA
• Number of discs ‏ : ‎ 1
• #19,260 in Action & Adventure DVDs

Customer reviews

Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them.

To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. It also analyzed reviews to verify trustworthiness.

• Sort reviews by Top reviews Most recent Top reviews

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. please try again later..

Top reviews from other countries

• Amazon Newsletter
• About Amazon
• Accessibility
• Sustainability
• Press Center
• Investor Relations
• Amazon Devices
• Amazon Science
• Sell on Amazon
• Sell apps on Amazon
• Supply to Amazon
• Protect & Build Your Brand
• Become an Affiliate
• Become a Delivery Driver
• Start a Package Delivery Business
• Advertise Your Products
• Self-Publish with Us
• Become an Amazon Hub Partner
• › See More Ways to Make Money
• Amazon Visa
• Amazon Store Card
• Amazon Secured Card
• Amazon Business Card
• Shop with Points
• Credit Card Marketplace
• Reload Your Balance
• Amazon Currency Converter
• Your Account
• Your Orders
• Shipping Rates & Policies
• Amazon Prime
• Returns & Replacements
• Manage Your Content and Devices
• Recalls and Product Safety Alerts
• Conditions of Use
• Privacy Notice
• Consumer Health Data Privacy Disclosure
• Your Ads Privacy Choices

University of South Florida

Main Navigation

Karen Ruiz-Ayala, MPH . (Photo courtesy of Ruiz-Ayala) 

The voyage of one COPH alumni through public health

• Liz Bannon, College of Public Health
• May 10, 2024
• Alumni & Development

Originally from Puerto Rico, Karen Ruiz-Ayala, a USF College of Public Health alumna, moved to Spring Hill, Fla. when she was young and discovered her passion for public health through reading.

“I was very interested in medical history and stories. An important introduction to the topic of public health was the book “Deadly” by Julie Chibbaro. It’s a fictionalized story about a young girl working as a lab assistant in New York at the turn of the century investigating a strange illness outbreak that would later be known as the famous Typhoid Mary case.,” she said.

Ruiz-Ayala’s decision to attend the COPH was influenced by its emphasis on research opportunities, notably the COPH Activist Lab , where she served as a student board member.

 " Dr. Karen Liller , the director of the Activist Lab, was a big inspiration,” Ruiz-Ayala said. “She made me feel like I could accomplish anything I set my mind to and was a role model for me."

Amidst her academic pursuits, Ruiz-Ayala faced the challenge of adapting to the COVID-19 pandemic. Reflecting on this experience, she shared, "We were sent home just a few weeks into my first semester at USF, and it was surreal learning about public health and its history while living through a pandemic as well.It was one of the best lessons about socioeconomic determinants of health and well-being that I could have ever had.”

Transitioning from academia to practical application, Ruiz-Ayala began her public health career at Hillsborough County Mosquito Management, where she worked as a mosquito control technician. In 2023, Ruiz went on to earn her master of public health, with a concentration in epidemiology from the University of Glasgow, in the United Kingdom.

Currently, Ruiz-Ayala is the public health officer for Carnival Cruise Lines, working onboard the Carnival Paradise.

As part of her integrated pest management duties, Ruiz-Ayala waits for ship clearance from local port authorities in order to go outside and check that the rat guard was placed properly to ensure the ship can avoid rodents coming onboard via the mooring lines. (Photo courtesy of Ruiz-Ayala)

In her role, Ruiz-Ayala said she ensures compliance with disease prevention and control measures, including COVID-19 protocols, and participates in outbreak management teams. She also oversees vessel compliance in areas such as sanitation and pest management, conducting audits and inspections to uphold public health standards.

“A passenger once asked me what I do onboard. I started to answer with a generic, ‘I’m the public health officer and my main responsibility is ensuring we prevent any illness outbreaks,’” Ruiz-Ayala said. “But our senior doctor cut in and said ‘She’s like the doctor for the whole boat. When people come to see me for something I can only ensure that individual is healthy, but she ensures the entire boat stays healthy’.” 

Ruiz-Ayalya also said she is involved in all departments including management both shipboard and shoreside.

"Effective communication for all departments is key to addressing public health concerns and maintaining a safe environment onboard," she said. "This means that I am involved in recreational and portable water, to the engine room, bridge, deck, housekeeping, food service and integrated pest management, as each one plays a different role in the health and safety of everyone onboard."

Despite the demanding nature of her work, Ruiz-Ayala said she finds fulfillment in the diverse responsibilities of her role.

"From disease prevention and control to vessel sanitation compliance and integrated pest management, I get to experience a wide range of public health practices," she said. "This diversity allows me to continually learn and grow professionally while making a meaningful impact on the health and safety of guests and crew."

Ruiz-Ayala is in front of the ship Paradise docked in Nassau, Bahamas in April 2024. (Photo courtesy Ruiz-Ayala)

She also pointed to travel as being one of the best perks of this job. “On my current itinerary, I travel in the Caribbean and the Bahamas. Seeing beautiful islands that so many people only dream of visiting in my everyday life is a special memory that I will always have.”

“Public health allows us to look at things from the bigger picture, address systemic issues, implement preventive measures and ultimately improve the overall well-being of communities and populations, making a lasting impact beyond individual health outcomes,” Ruiz-Ayala said. “By understanding the broader factors influencing health, we can create more effective interventions and policies that promote health equity and sustainable change.

In the future, Ruiz Ayala said she would like to transition to working more with integrated pest management. “That was my master’s thesis and one of my specialties with my previous work experience,” she said. “Most public health officers have a specialty such as water, sanitation, medical and mine just happens to be pest management.”

What did you want to be when you grew up? A doctor.

Where can we find you on the weekend? Working. I work 4 months at a time, 10 hours a day, with no days off. I usually don’t know what day of the week it is, only if we are in Bimini or Cozumel.

What is a superpower you would want to have? Teleportation so I could be with the people I love more easily while I’m working onboard. 

What is the last book you read? “Done and Dusted” by Lyla Sage.

What is your all-time favorite movie? “Mamma Mia”. 

Return to article listing

Karen Ruiz-Ayala

Explore More Categories

• Awards & Honors
• College News
• Community Engagement
• In the Media
• Research & Innovation
• Student Life
• USF SafetyFlorida

About Department News

Welcome to the USF COPH news page. Our marketing and communications team is entrusted with storytelling. Through written stories, photography, video and social media we highlight alumni, faculty, staff and students who are committed to passionately solving problems and creating conditions that allow every person the universal right to health and well-being. These are our stories.