The Shallows - Review
Director: Jaume Collet-Serra
Cast: Blake Lively
Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water after the unnerving ocean tales such as Jaws, Open Water and Adrift, The Shallows will leave you skittish to let alone dip your toes in the water in fear of a toothy surprise.
Medical student Nancy (Blake Lively) travels to a paradisiacal island in order to establish a reconnection with her deceased mother. Whilst the sand is lush and the ocean glimmering, something sinister lurks beneath and throws Nancy's idyllic getaway into a fight for survival. After being forced to take refuge on a rock to escape a bloodthirsty shark, Nancy must use all of her surrounding resources and her wits and strength to outsmart the finned foe.
Director Jaume Collet-Serra (responsible for flicks such as Non-Stop) continues to demonstrate his impressive prowess at directing actions and working wonders with a singular location, highlighting its vast, breathtaking beauty and the indifferent attitude that nature has towards its visitors. Collet-Serra also strikes the balance of building nail-biting suspense whilst incorporating fleeting jump scares. Being aware of the premise, you are immediately on edge as soon as Nancy enters the water, even as she gleefully catches the waves against an electronic beat. However, the feeling of an imminent shark attack is not one that subsides until the beast eventually strikes, and you'll experience an odd sense of relief when the inevitable eventually happens and you can momentarily unclench. Although, that sense of relief is soon replaced by one of dread and panic as our already endangered heroine is physically maimed and fighting for her life.
The Shallows occasionally shows its B-movie colours as the camera voyeuristically surveys Blake Lively's bikini body, clearly aiming to appease the men amongst the audience in case gripping and brutal shake attacks aren't thrilling enough. Thankfully, these lascivious shots are few and far between and are forgivable. The screenplay also suffers from blatant exposition to give Nancy a backstory and a hefty emotional through line, which gets a little exasperating. However, Blake Lively gives a tour de force performance and delivers such exposition with hearty authenticity. Lively conveys the ever-changing emotions that Nancy experiences as she gathers a steely resolve and quiet resilience as she is faces with increasingly more testing situations. For the majority of the film, Lively's acting partner is either a CGI monster or the affectionately named Steven Seagull, Nancy's winged companion who is similarly rooted on the rock nursing an injury, but Lively is always thoroughly convincing. As she battles the elements and the toothy antagonist, Nancy puts to use her medical smarts and astute problem-solving skills whilst remaining determined even when the odds are not in her favour, thus creating an extremely likeable character who everybody will champion.
Is The Shallows a flawed film? Yes. But is it entertaining? Most definitely. With stunning visuals, arresting action and a commendable lead performance, The Shallows overcomes its detractions and will provide the audience with nothing but raptured jumps and blissful joy.
EB
Cast: Blake Lively
Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water after the unnerving ocean tales such as Jaws, Open Water and Adrift, The Shallows will leave you skittish to let alone dip your toes in the water in fear of a toothy surprise.Medical student Nancy (Blake Lively) travels to a paradisiacal island in order to establish a reconnection with her deceased mother. Whilst the sand is lush and the ocean glimmering, something sinister lurks beneath and throws Nancy's idyllic getaway into a fight for survival. After being forced to take refuge on a rock to escape a bloodthirsty shark, Nancy must use all of her surrounding resources and her wits and strength to outsmart the finned foe.
Director Jaume Collet-Serra (responsible for flicks such as Non-Stop) continues to demonstrate his impressive prowess at directing actions and working wonders with a singular location, highlighting its vast, breathtaking beauty and the indifferent attitude that nature has towards its visitors. Collet-Serra also strikes the balance of building nail-biting suspense whilst incorporating fleeting jump scares. Being aware of the premise, you are immediately on edge as soon as Nancy enters the water, even as she gleefully catches the waves against an electronic beat. However, the feeling of an imminent shark attack is not one that subsides until the beast eventually strikes, and you'll experience an odd sense of relief when the inevitable eventually happens and you can momentarily unclench. Although, that sense of relief is soon replaced by one of dread and panic as our already endangered heroine is physically maimed and fighting for her life.
The Shallows occasionally shows its B-movie colours as the camera voyeuristically surveys Blake Lively's bikini body, clearly aiming to appease the men amongst the audience in case gripping and brutal shake attacks aren't thrilling enough. Thankfully, these lascivious shots are few and far between and are forgivable. The screenplay also suffers from blatant exposition to give Nancy a backstory and a hefty emotional through line, which gets a little exasperating. However, Blake Lively gives a tour de force performance and delivers such exposition with hearty authenticity. Lively conveys the ever-changing emotions that Nancy experiences as she gathers a steely resolve and quiet resilience as she is faces with increasingly more testing situations. For the majority of the film, Lively's acting partner is either a CGI monster or the affectionately named Steven Seagull, Nancy's winged companion who is similarly rooted on the rock nursing an injury, but Lively is always thoroughly convincing. As she battles the elements and the toothy antagonist, Nancy puts to use her medical smarts and astute problem-solving skills whilst remaining determined even when the odds are not in her favour, thus creating an extremely likeable character who everybody will champion.
Is The Shallows a flawed film? Yes. But is it entertaining? Most definitely. With stunning visuals, arresting action and a commendable lead performance, The Shallows overcomes its detractions and will provide the audience with nothing but raptured jumps and blissful joy.
EB
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