Review of Waves (2019) by Ben1322 — 07 Sep 2021

This was a confusing one. I’ll start with the first half of the film.

It’s hard for me to give any film a negative review because usually the intentions are unclear. However, I thought that the first half of the film was unnatural in dialogue, forced in development and overall poor and predictable. They tried so hard to make the film relatable that it ended up being the opposite. I found it incredibly difficult to garner any sympathy for Tyler due to the forced character development. When Tyler finds out about the injury, he spirals down into a depressive state; the actions that followed were almost as if the director was checking off items on a list of what a teenager may do when they are feeling depressed. A drug and alcohol problem comes seemingly out of nowhere with no context. I thought the dialougue between Tyler and Alexis on the way home from the abortion center was unnatural and forced, but I thought throughout the film the acting was great. The climax of the film, when Tyler kills Alexis, was very well done. The camera work in conjunction with the suspenseful music and Harrisons’ acting show how drastic a situation can escalate too. The second half of the movie was extremely well done. Emily and Luke’s interactions are by far the most believable and relatable in the film. The soft feeling towards the entire second half with the knowledge of what happened in the first balance the film very well. Oftentimes we forget that a film typically focuses on one subject and fail to realize what effect that subject may have on others; this film brilliantly explores, in depth, the life of a second character. It is puzzling how one part was forced/unnatural while the other was so well paced and relatable. Maybe that was Shults’ intention. Regardless of the intention, I appreciated the creativity to split the film in two. I can’t give it a higher rating because I thought the first half was mediocre, but I can truly appreciate the second half.