"The Shallows" Film Review
Imagine you're on vacation, surfing, enjoying yourself when everything suddenly goes wrong. You are stuck on a rock, far from the shore, injured, and your phone is on the beach with your food and water. Oh, and no one knows where you are. Even you forgot the name of the beach. To make matters worse, a shark is circling you. That's the situation our main character Nancy (Blake Lively) finds herself in.
The writing was exceptional. I liked how Nancy was smart and figured out her next moves quickly. She didn't whine or blame God or fall into a depressive coma. She thought out each move carefully and made rational decisions that ultimately helps her make it through til the end. How does it end? Nice try, but I'm not telling.
I do want to mention one scene that thoroughly impressed me. When Nancy is first attacked by the shark, she sees a whale that has been killed and is floating nearby. Nancy swam to it and climbed on top of it, using the whale as a safe place until she could figure out her next move. The reason this impressed me was because most women in modern horror films would have been far too grossed out to consider going near it, much less climbing on top of it.
The acting was the only issue for this film. Blake seemed to not be completely there during the first 15 minutes or so, causing her to not give her best. Once the shark came into the picture, though, she improved greatly. I'm glad, too, because the film is nearly a one-woman show so the film could have suffered greatly had she not gotten better.
In conclusion, I was engulfed in this film and couldn't turn away. The smarts, the effects, the final showdown...all of it was beyond my expectations. I certainly recommend this film to anyone that loves horror/thriller movies.It will not disappoint you.
© 2016 Nathan Jasper