The 33

The film is based on the events of the 2010 Copiapó mining accident, also known as the "Chilean mining accident". It is directed by Patricia Riggen and written by Mikko Alanne and José Rivera. Producer Mike Medavoy, who also produced Apocalypse Now, worked with the miners, their families, and those involved to put the film together.[9] On 13 August 2014, it was announced that The 33 would be the first film to receive the Colombian Film Commission's incentive, which includes 40% for film services and 20% for film logistics services of the amount spent in the country.[10]

Juliette Binoche and Antonio Banderas with the former President of Chile Sebastián Piñera in La Moneda Palace, Santiago, Chile.

Antonio Banderas, who portrays "Super" Mario Sepúlveda, is the public face for the miners who sent videos to the rescuers to update them on the miners' condition. The actual Sepúlveda expressed his enthusiasm and approval towards having Banderas in the role.[11] Brazilian actor Rodrigo Santoro plays Laurence Golborne, Minister of Mining. On 17 June 2013, it was announced that Jennifer Lopez had joined to lead the cast of the film,[12] but later left due to scheduling conflicts with American Idol. She was replaced by Juliette Binoche.[5]

On 10 January 2014, Cote de Pablo joined the cast of the film; she plays the wife of one of the trapped miners.[13] On 27 January 2014, Gabriel Byrne joined the cast of the film, to play the role of Andre Sougarret, the engineering genius who masterminded the miraculous rescue of the 33 trapped miners.[6] Next day on 28 January, Bob Gunton joined the cast of the Chilean miner filming, then shooting in Colombia; he plays the role of Chilean President Sebastián Piñera.[7]

Principal photography began in December 2013 in Colombia.[14] Before shooting began, Riggen interviewed each of the miners and their families.[15] After the shooting wrapped up in Nemocón, Colombia in January, crews started filming again in Copiapó, Chile on 5 February 2014, which was the actual place of the incident.[16] On 18 February 2014, news told that more than half of the filming was done in the salt mine of Nemocón, Colombia, and rescue scenes were being filmed in Tierra Amarilla, Chile.[17] Filming wrapped up on 20 February 2014.[18]

In October 2014, James Horner was hired to compose the music for the film.[19] It was the second of two scores he had completed in 2015, before his death on 22 June of that year.

On 28 April 2015, Alcon Entertainment acquired North American and the majority of international distribution rights to The 33, with Warner Bros. to distribute it. On the same day, Warner Bros, where Alcon has its output deal, set the film's release date for 13 November 2015.[22]

According to Box Office Mojo The 33 grossed $12.2 million in North America and $12.7 million in other territories for a worldwide total of $24.9 million, against its production budget of $26 million.[3] The data is inaccurate though since Box Office Mojo e.g. for the UK and Germany only has data for the first weekend and data for France is missing completely even though the film has been released in the country.[23][24]

In North America, The 33 opened alongside Love the Coopers and My All American on 13 November 2015 with a very poor performance. In its opening weekend, the film was projected to gross $7–8 million from 2,452 theaters.[25] The film grossed $1.8 million on its opening day and $5.8 million in its opening weekend, finishing below studio projections.[26]

In Chile, the film grossed $1.6 million on its opening weekend, 6 August 2015, showing on 140 screens. This is the second biggest opening for a Chilean film (5% behind Stefan v/s Kramer), despite coinciding with a severe storm that caused flooding in Santiago and other parts of the country and also marked the sixth-highest opening for Fox International Productions.[27] It topped the box office there for five consecutive weekends and became the second highest-grossing Chilean film.[28] The film grossed a total of $4.9 million in Chile.[29]

In Mexico it opened at No. 3 with $1.3 million, but ended up grossing only a total of $3 million there after three weeks in release.[29][30]

On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 43% based on 124 reviews, with an average rating of 5.5/10. The site's critical consensus reads, "The 33 offers an appropriately inspirational account of real-life heroism, but its stirring story and solid performances are undermined by a flawed focus and an overreliance on formula."[31] On Metacritic, the film has received a weighted average score of 55 out of 100, based on 31 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[32] On CinemaScore, audiences gave the film an average grade of "A–" on an A+ to F scale.[26]

Scott Tobias of Variety said, "The 33 aims for a comprehensive survey of efforts above ground and below, but winds up looking less like a sober docudrama than a ginned-up Irwin Allen disaster movie."[33]

Chilean critics had mixed reviews. Ana Josefa Silva gave a mildly positive review, saying that the movie "excites and entertains", but that the good rhythm of the first half becomes stalled. She praised the acting, but criticized the use of many clichés, like the heroic young character (Golborne), the "inhumane" politician (Piñera) or the brave, "badass" Latina woman (Segovia).[34] Las Últimas Noticias stated that "while the epic of the rescue is observed thanks to the effective recreation, the agony of the rescued remains in debt in the staging", and also noted the "young and handsome" hero stereotype.[35] La Segunda described it as "a catastrophe film with a life message and sentimental vocation that is not willing to give up to truisms associated with the image that Hollywood has of Hispanic America".[36] El Mercurio gave a negative review, criticizing the absence of people responsible for the precarious working conditions of the miners, although praising the recreation of the mine and the catastrophe.[37]