The Shallows

As far as these Hollywood shark terror films go, the ones where the animals will eat anything, will keep eating after they’ve chowed down numerous people and animals, will zone in on a single person and relentlessly stalk them until one kills the other… “The Shallows” is entertaining. It may not bring anything new to the screen but it’s a nice lean picture with good suspense and a solid performance from lead Blake Lively.

Nancy (Lively) has arrived at a remote beach  Spoiler alert - click to reveal textin order to reconnect with her recently deceased mother. Catching waves and enjoying the sun, she suddenly finds herself stranded on a rock with the high tide coming and a shark between her and the beach.

I had to sit and think about this film. It features one of these cinematic sharks that’s downright colossal, is so hungry it becomes reckless (even for an animal) and you can tell has swallowed countless other people due to the numerous marks on it’s head. I’ve got mixed feelings about this idea of a single animal zeroing in and insisting on eating this one person. I have to admit though, as a film with this premise, “The Shallows” works. If you suspend your disbelief, imagine that past those teeth is a portal to another dimension that can never be filled, you’ll see that there’s a lot of good stuff here. I think you owe it to the film to do so anyway, I mean the shark is essentially the premise of the movie.

There are a few instances where I think “The Shallows” becomes a typical monster movie. The character is well developed and interesting enough that I don’t think some of the gore was necessary, and a few sudden fortunate developments for our heroine makes sense, but comes very suddenly. I feel like it could have been handled better because once the film is over you start thinking about it and go “hey wait a minute… how did that happen? ”. I’m not saying there are plot holes; it’s just that it moves very briskly and some details feel like they were left behind. Fortunately, the good outweighs the bad. This is a horror/thriller as slender as its attractive lead. It focuses solely on what it does best: the suspense and the danger. This film is all about our heroine being stuck on this rock and figuring out how to escape. I enjoy films with that kind of structure. It means that the protagonist has to be as intelligent as the audience. You look at the measly equipment she has on hand and your mind starts racing. What can be used to patch herself up, what unlikely broken piece of gear will turn out to be crucial in her escape? Can this item here be transformed into a weapon? What can she do in order to ensure her rescue? Focusing on a single character and just this one situation, the film puts you in that survival mode very well. It helps that Lively is well suite for the role.

In terms of cinematography, “The Shallows” is quite impressive. There’s just something about surfing that lends itself to the big screen. You’ve got the hot bodies in bathing suits, beautiful beaches, the blazing sun, crystal-clear waters, all of which are very cinematic. Then there’s the sport itself. You get movement in the air as the board skids through the crashing waves, there’s the 3-dimensional possibilities as the performer dives in the water and there’s times when they’re just moseying along, or sitting on the board with their feet dangling in the water like two bronze-coloured drumsticks. What I’m saying is that it’s nice to have a horror film where people aren’t wandering into some place they’ve got no business going and everything is covered in cobwebs. Here, the cinematography is great. It all looks good, even the shots during the end credits. I wish I had the names of the underwater and surf sequence directors to credit them personally.

“The Shallows” isn’t going to change the pool of shark attack films, but it gets the little details right. It minimizes the number of characters to create real suspense, the scenario is a compelling one and the special effects are good for its low budget. Blake Lively is charismatic and believable, you care about her character and while that shark may be a fantasy creature that would never exist in real life, it’s a frightening opponent for her to go up against. I had mixed feelings about the conclusion at first, but it’s not a bad one. It fits with the rest of the movie well. If you want to see a scary shark movie, but you’re tired of the classics, “The Shallows” is an enjoyable trip to the theatre. (Theatrical version on the big screen, June 25, 2016)