Review of The Shallows (2016) by Jesse O — 27 Sep 2016

I'll be straight up, this movie isn't very dynamic. I don't mean that in derogatory manner, I just mean the fact that it's pretty much a movie that sticks to one tone and theme without much variation or change.

It's very straightforward and to the point. Though, if you've been living under a rock, thanks to Sharknado, shark films can be far more than 'basic' horror films. Though if your inspiration behind making a shark movie is Sharknado, then your movie might not be taken very seriously.

And it probably might not be your intention for it to be taken seriously. But, that's not really relevant to the review. I liked this movie, I really did. Does it do something different from what the shark genre has been since Jaws first came out over 40 years ago? No, not really.

And the thing that surprised me about the movie, more than anything else, is the fact that, really, this is a basic story of survival. While it does have some horror elements, and some gore, and I'm sure the entire experience will be horrifying for some people, but the movie is more about Nancy surviving this harrowing experience and much less about the shark being an asshole.

Though the shark is an asshole. I don't feel that there's really much to say about the movie itself since, as I mentioned, it doesn't really go to a lot of places tonally or thematically. Nancy goes to this beach that her mother, who passed way due to cancer, went to when she found out that she was pregnant with her.

The idea being that Nancy, a med student, had some sort of breakdown and she escaped with her friend to Mexico and she has put off her studies. She feels that her mother fought to the very end and it didn't change the outcome of her situation, so she feels hopeless because of that.

No matter what she does, she won't be able to really make a change in people's lives. And all of that is surprisingly subtle in its exposition. Well, subtle for a movie about a fucking killer shark.

Anyway, once she gets to this beach, a beautiful fucking beach by the way, she starts surfing and meets up with these two other dudes. After these dudes leave, she accidentally stumbles upon a shark's feeding ground, which is when the shit hits the fan.

Really, it's not like I can do much to go over. It's a typical story where Nancy tries to find several ways to escape her situation without much success. But the movie is definitely well made so that, at the very least it's entertaining to watch, even if these themes may be worn out.

The movie is good, I don't have much of a problem admitting that. But it's also a movie that really is, inevitably, gonna be compared to Jaws and that's always bound to be an unfavorable comparison.

Blake Lively is great in this movie and she really is a major reason why the film works. It's not a role that's really super complex, but you needed someone that you could get behind and with Nancy's backstory and Blake's performance, you got exactly that.

I don't root for characters in movies, it's just weird knowing that it's not real, but I can see how people would be rooting for her. Like I said, it's just a well made movie that is quite entertaining.

Though I didn't really like the aftermath of Nancy being saved. She sees a brief hallucination of her mother. I don't hate it, but it was very sappy and felt out of place in this film. Not that it's the best movie of the year or anything like that, it's not even close, but it's an enjoyable film that has all the requisite thrills associated with this subgenre.

I'd recommend it, as a rental more than anything else. Or wait until it hits your favorite streaming service.