Underwater is a great film, y’all. I have watched Kristen Stewart ruin vampires (The Twilight film franchise), ghosts (Personal Shopper) and fairy tales (Snow White and the Huntsman) with her understated, mumbling acting style, and while I am still not a fan and still believe that she could do better, I had fun!
Underwater is Alien meets Pacific Rim with a strong heart. Yes, I think that Guillermo del Toro would give his stamp of approval on this film. Instead of space, we’re under the sea at the behest of a corporation. The movie is unrelenting from beginning to end as the remaining crew must constantly scramble to figure out how to survive the ever-increasing stakes—waiting to be rescued is never an option.
I really enjoyed Underwater’s ensemble cast, especially the comedic relief, which worked for me. I believed these people genuinely cared about each other and had a history. If you can, refrain from looking at the cast list as I did, then you will be delightfully surprised as you discover each familiar face in this fantastic sci fi setting. They are famous, but not brand names. You may not even be able to recall which movie you originally saw them in so you get an immediate familiarity without rolling your eyes at the idea that this blockbuster star is a humble blue collar worker roughing it in deep waters. There is not an action star in the bunch. Well, maybe one, but that person manages to convincingly suppress her fighting experience. There is also some nice diversity although I have to take away one point for one early death regardless of how noble it was.
Underwater teases what could go wrong then delivers consequences without feeling bloodthirsty or as if the victims are interchangeable and expendable. After an early scene, there is the idea that each life is precious, and the film tells us fairly early on how many lives are in jeopardy. It feels like a major disaster, and the loss of each person matters. There is also a dance between two related themes: overcoming instinctual revulsion of death to survive and make the greatest sacrifice. One of the most memorable scenes is immediately after someone dies, the protagonist must walk through the mist and debris of this person’s remains so the sacrifice is not in vain.
Even as people die, Underwater is still fun to watch because we came to see how horrible things can get if you drill down 36,000 feet underwater, and we do. I was briefly surprised as the film seemed to tease the possibility that maybe a side effect of drilling was neurological problems, but nope there are monsters or rather hithertofore undiscovered sea creatures. Honestly if there was not a scientific explanation for them, I would think that they were completely demonic or Lovecraftian. They felt inspired by, not ripped off from, del Toro’s oeuvre (take notes, Hellboy reboot). Tip your CGI team on your way out of the theater. I watch a lot of movies, but at the denouement, when the protagonist finally sees the big bad, she starts running, and yeah, she has nowhere to go, but going towards that thing is not an option AT ALL. Near the end when we get to see the relationship between the big bad and the other creatures, shitting your pants is the most feasible, reasonable option. It felt as if this film could be a prequel for Cloverfield, and I consider that possibility, which is not rooted in reality, as a good thing. I also loved that the point of the script is a classic nod to the cautionary tale of all sci fi—there are some things that human beings should not do, and if they do, there will be horrific consequences. I adored that the women characters were the voice of the audience, urging their colleagues not to take an action that would further endanger them. Don’t play around with deep sea or abyssal gigantism. Even Godzilla would tap out.
Underwater generally had a great look. The technology seemed impressive and plausible yet still somewhat futuristic, but used. Even the quotidian set design underscored the tension of the film, particularly the cheesy workplace safety posters. I loved the found footage notes within the film, which is my guilty pleasure, but enhanced my enjoyment of the film. I am not sure if I understood how the helmet screen projections were supposed to work, but if you do, drop me a line please. Instead of putting a ton of prose in a character’s mouth and dragging the movie down, the opening and closing credits provide the backstory and the setting. The camera work was incredibly dynamic and constantly provides perspective and context regarding the spatial relationship between the characters and their surroundings. I still had problems completely getting my bearings and lost track of the location of characters, but I think it was a deliberate choice of the filmmakers so we could relate to the characters.
It did not bother me, but Underwater made sure that the women were credibly in underwear a certain number of times in the film whereas the men with the exception of the comedic relief always seemed fully clothed. I think that the filmmaker was also going for an Alice in Wonderland theme with an aphorism on someone’s uniform, a stuffed bunny or an errant line from a character, but I am not sure if it entirely hit the way that it was supposed to or what it was supposed to signify.
Would I watch a sequel to Underwater? Sure. The closing credits definitely leave room for a new cast in a similar setting. Without the element of surprise, I think that it could still work if all the people working behind the camera stayed on board, including director William Eubank. I saw and enjoyed a previous film that Eubanks directed, The Signal, but thought that he needed to work on the story more, and I think that he took the note to heart while simultaneously never reading that review. He is a solid sci fi filmmaker who delivers an entertaining movie that could have been bad, but never had any fatal flaws. Unfortunately I almost did not see this film because of Stewart, and the way that the film was promoted along with the timing of its release, it feels as if it is going to be dreadful so I would not be surprised if it does poorly in theaters. During its opening weekend, it was in seventh place behind Like A Boss! It does not deserve that kind of reception!
Please see Underwater in theaters if you can. Overcome your instinctual revulsion of Stewart, and you will be rewarded with a great time!