Review of Black Water (2008) by Ray C — 09 Dec 2008

Believable and suspenseful, bound to leave the audience nervy and on edge throughout the duration of the feature. The young trio are all very good, despite the limited film experience they have and the photography, (real footage of 'salties' are used) make it that much more enjoyabe and realistic without having to tolerate another poorly animated creature effort.

Two sisters, Grace and Lee, as well as the former's boyfriend embark on a fishing trip and tour of some of the waterways the Northern Territory has to offer after Christmas. Despite assurances that crocodiles have been mostly 'shot and sent to be farmed' by their guide, sure enough a rampaging croc does turn up and knocks the pitiful tinnie and its contents into a secluded mangrove.

What follows is an incredibly tense, careful survival story, the characters are well developed and as they seperate they try out various methods in which to seek temporary shelter in a mangrove tree and then begin to speculate routes in which to take out of there.

The environement almost becomes a character within itself, close-ups of innocent dragonflies and the neverending aura of crickets and cicadas enforce a man vs the wild atmosphere and also act as a sort of contrast to the unrelenting (and it really is UNRELENTING) beast at hand.

The crocodile doesn't really appear in full until one of the three decides to retrieve the capsized boat, and from then on every one of its appearances are the stuff nightmares are made of. Black Water is a better film than Rogue, which was more of a flashy, big-dumb-fun film than this quieter, deeper film which bases itself heavily on problem solving and finding a way around the violent clutches, ferocious jaw-snapping malice of the croc.