Underwater
And you thought the water in Flint had problems.
Cast of Characters:
Norah Price – Kristen Stewart
Capt. Lucien – Vincent Cassel
Emily Haversham – Jessica Henwick
Liam Smith – John Gallagher, Jr.
Rodrigo Nagenda – Mamoudou Athie
Paul Abel – T.J. Miller
Director – William Eubank
Screenplay – Brian Duffield & Adam Cozad
Producer – Peter Chernin, Jenno Topping & Tonia Davis
Rated PG-13 for sci-fi action and terror, and brief strong language.
The Rundown: Following a large earthquake that wrecks an underwater lab, a drill team, led by Capt. Lucian (Vincent Cassel) and mechanical engineer Norah Price (Kristen Stewart), must brave an entire mile along the ocean floor to reach the Roebuck Station, the one destination left that is able to provide them with a chance at surviving. However, as their perilous journey begins, they soon realize that there’s more danger than just the exposed, unforgiving depths of the sea that awaits them.
Pre-Release Buzz: One would assume that Disney, having acquired 20th Century Fox back in the spring of 2019, has little to no interest or care in this film. Underwater may have a talented cast and a bare-bones, race against the clock gimmick that has proven effective before (The Poseidon Adventure, Alien, The Descent, Crawl); however, this was shot back in mid-2017, and here it’s now finally getting a throwaway release… three years later and in January. But given Disney’s itchy little trigger finger on giving the axe to a number of Fox properties upon first acquiring the company, I guess this film should be happy it got a release period.
The Good: I’m usually a sucker for films like these which confine the story within a tight, contained setting, giving the characters a perilous objective that unfolds almost in
Eubank and co-writers Brian Duffield and Adam Cozad wisely don’t bother wasting time on superfluous setups or introductions. This isn’t so much a film about the characters as it the conflict the characters are thrust into. Right away, Eubank plunges us directly into the disaster, with resulting stakes that feel palpable and a sense of urgency and panic that is unrelenting. This is partly aided to great effect by Bojan Bazelli’s cinematography and Bob Kellough’s pulse-pounding sound design. Bazelli, in particular, opts to shoot a good portion of the film in tight, claustrophobic closeups, some of which of through character POVs, which lends to much of the film’s tension.
Also lending a helping hand in generating stakes with investing in are the performances, here delivered by a game cast of character actors, led by an impressive lead turn from Kristen Stewart. Some of their characters’ backstories revealed throughout the course of the film feel more like a slapped on means to generate sympathy that doesn’t quite work as well as intended, the effort from the cast is nevertheless evident, save for T.J. Miller whose schtick grows old fairly fast (Miller is Underwater’s version of Harry Dean Stanton from Alien, but while Stanton’s schtick felt authentic to the character, T.J. Miller is essentially playing T.J. Miller). Vincent Cassel, Jessica Henwick, John Gallagher, Jr. and Mamoudou Athie all turn in solid supporting turns, but it’s Stewart who’s the standout here. It is she who sells the film’s immediacy the most, giving Norah the intelligence and resourcefulness needed to survive, while also providing her with a fear and vulnerability toward the situation at hand.
The Bad: Despite Bazelli’s great camerawork, I’ll admit that as things began to get more amped-up, he and Eubank could’ve toned down the murkiness. In some ways, that’s almost inevitable given the scenario Eubank and his writers have chosen to play in. With an underwater setting that has been wrecked to hell-and-back by machine destruction and explosions, the murky issues, whether seen as a drawback or not, are to be expected, but they never become a distraction.
Also, this is more of an annoying nitpick, but for whatever reason, Underwater is bookended by both a needless expository montage during the opening credits and a post-credits coda explaining what followed after the film’s events. I guess it’s meant to explain all that’s happening down at the bottom of the sea, but it’s nothing more than unnecessary commentary, and most certainly could be removed without causing the film to miss a beat.
The Ugly: Whatever those screeching foreskins with legs are that are after this crew.
Consensus: Bolstered by director William Eubank’s thrilling sense of urgency and a strong cast led by Kristen Stewart, Underwater may borrow from better films of its kind, but nevertheless does exactly what’s needed to be a lean, mean, tension-filled disaster flick.
Silver Screen Fanatic’s Verdict: I give Underwater a B+ (★★★).
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