Underwater

Starring: Kristen Stewart, Vincent Cassel, John Gallagher Jr., Jessica Henwick, T.J. Miller, Mamoudou Athie

Director: William Eubank

A sudden and mysterious earthquake rocks the Marianas Trench, causing catastrophic and life threatening damage to the Keppler, an underwater drilling and research center. After being unable to contact anyone on the surface, Norah (Kristen Stewart) and the remaining survivors Captain Lucian (Vincent Cassel), Emily (Jessica Henwick), Paul (T.J. Miller), Liam (John Gallagher Jr.) and Rodrigo (Mamoudou Athie) must descend to the sea floor and make their way to the Roebuck, the last remaining station with any life pods to help them reach safety. They soon discover they are not alone down in the dark depths of the sea and their chances for survival are quickly becoming less and less likely.

I'll be honest, I wasn't expecting much from this movie. January isn't a promising month for films and I get very claustrophobic in films that take place underwater. That being said, I'm surprised at how much I ended up enjoying it despite its faults.

Let's start with the good. The movie kicks things off with a bang, starting immediately with the destruction of the Keppler and a few of the core cast needing to run through the chaos to safety. Despite not giving us any time to get to know the characters, the first thirty to forty-five minutes is a tightly paced and suspenseful thrill ride. While there are hints as to the creatures' existence, the movie keeps focused on the crew as the disorienting and terrifying nature of their situation settles in.

When the film's Lovecraftian influences do eventually come to the surface, things do shift into some camp and silliness. There were a couple of guys next to me who couldn't stifle their giggles, but it wasn't enough to take me out of the film. There are a couple good, albeit telegraphed, jump scares and sequences on the sea floor that should please horror fans.

I say should, because there are moments where things are so dark it was hard to tell what was going on. I also think that the movie was at its best when the creatures were an unseen plot device or briefly glimpsed in the background. When it becomes a full blown special effects extravaganza, especially in the third act, some of the suspense and tension is lost.

The cast does their best with their thinly drawn characters. Not only was it good to see reliable character actors like Vincent Cassel and John Gallagher Jr., I really did enjoy Kristen Stewart. While she didn't put as much effort in as she does with her indie films, she could have completely sleepwalked through playing Norah and didn't.

Director William Eubank follows up on the promise he showed in 2014 with his debut film The Signal, creating a palpable sense of tension and dread, especially in the first act. He also chose to shoot some scenes from the perspective of the characters in their suits that had me on edge even before the creatures showed up. Yes, I am that easy.

As a side note, this would have fit perfectly in the Cloverfield universe. Despite the involvement of John Gallagher Jr. and TJ Miller, who had already starred in 10 Cloverfield Lane and Cloverfield respectively, they very easily could have tied this in to the established mythos. Audiences kept trying to predict when the next Cloverfield movie was coming, with 2018's Overlord seeming like the most likely candidate, but I'm guessing Paramount got cold feet after seeing how The Cloverfield Paradox was received. Either way, I feel like this was a big missed opportunity.

I'm glad this film finally got released, as it was shot nearly three years ago. It's not necessarily a good movie but my low expectations were met and I walked out entertained despite the faults. That's all I can ask for.

B-