Underwater (2020) Movie Review
Written by: ML
Edited by: Grave Reviews Staff
Film Information
Director: William Eubank
Producers: Peter Chernin, Tonia Davis, Jenno Topping
Writers: Brian Duffield, Adam Cozad
Date Released: January 10, 2020
Cast:
Kristen Stewart as Norah
Vincent Cassel as Captain Lucien
Mamoudou Athie as Rodrigo
T.J. Miller as Paul
John Gallagher Jr. as Smith
Jessica Henwick as Emily
Rating = 3/5 Graves
***May contain some spoilers***
Synopsis
Underwater (2020) is about a small group of survivors who found each other trying to escape the deepest territory underwater. Thinking it was an earthquake destroying their drilling station, they had no idea that the entire project somehow awakened a giant alien-like creature at the bottom of the ocean. They have to risk walking the ocean floor to get to the escape pods in another station to get to the surface.
Gore Factor
There were several jump scares in this movie. The notable ones include every appearance of the creatures, and the bloody character deaths where they imploded with pressure. The goriest was the scene where Norah was halfway being eaten by a creature and she blew it to pieces. Though the movie failed to explore on the anatomy of the baby creature, the big ones had sharp claws and teeth. The gigantic creature acting like a queen bee resembles an giant octopus. Based on their appearance, they look like aliens rather than sea creatures.
The Grave Review
There is nothing scarier than the deep unknown. Underwater creature feature can be compared to outer space aliens. The only difference is that the ocean is darker with no sun, stars, and planets to make the view bright and interesting. This movie gave that feeling of anxiety that we have a lot more to explore on earth.
The opening credits were able to give viewers an idea of what is happening in the movie. There is a drilling project in the deepest part of the ocean and the story starts with a disaster. It was so fast-paced and everything was already destroyed by the time they got out.
The horror aspect of this movie comes from the idea of meddling with the unknown. The darkness of the ocean floor made the jump scares unpredictable. It also adds to the mystery of the gigantic alien-looking creature since it’s unclear what they look like exactly.
The only problem is the lack of character development and proper introduction. Since the movie started with the station being destroyed, there was no time to introduce each key character, their relationship with each other, what they do in the drilling project, and get to know them as a person. The movie is just about their survival. Because of this, it’s hard to relate to the characters other than the terror of their situation. Even the baby creature they captured was not explored.
The ending is good in the sense that it also had end credits giving the viewers an idea of what happened after the events of the movie. Since there was an indication that the drilling continued and there was no confirmation if the creature was eradicated, it calls for a sequel, possibly with an explanation of where these creatures come from and some back story.
Overall, this movie is recommended for those who like movies about creatures and aliens, as well as disasters and survival.
For the foregoing reasons, Grave Reviews gives Underwater (2020) three graves out of five graves.
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