Yes, Blanchard Ryan looks good. The movie warms you up with a nice nudity
shot.
Open Water- The Story
The story is simple. We are greeted with what seems to be a married couple,
Susan and Daniel, about to take what looks like a hurried vacation as both
[more so the wife] are completely tied up with a life of work. Now, for
the first ten or so minutes of the film, I was a little worried about how
things were looking. First off, the filming looked as if it was done with
a standard home video camera [ala Blair Witch Project] with some awkward
angles to boot. While some of the camera angles I appreciated, others were
completely unnecessary. On the other hand, I was able to easily look past
this thanks to the blatant full nudity scene by Susan [played by Blanchard
Ryan]. Wow, that was nice. Ok, back on topic.
Open Water fools its viewers for about the first fifteen to twenty
minutes of the film. During this time, it just seems like you are watching
a semi-decent acted home video attempt at making a feature movie. However,
once the couple hits the water, the film stock changes and the camera stock
becomes much better [that of a feature film]. And I got to say, there are
some brilliant uses of the camera while in the water. But on to that later.
So, the couple goes on vacation to an island with a scuba trip somewhere
in their agenda. Susan and Daniel, not wanting to hang with the rest of
the scuba group, decide to go off by themselves and follow other deep sea
creatures. As long as they get back to their boat by a certain time, they
should be fine. Well, as you can assume, this is not the case as a miscount
causes their tour boat to leave them stranded in... Open Water.
The film actually hurries you to their abandonment within 20 minutes.
I would urinate and scare it away with my warm cloud. If that didn't work...
I would shit myself.
Open Water- The Review
With that said, you are going to enjoy this film. I do not know what it
is about Open Water, but there is something there that makes this
film seem all too real and all too disturbing. Once the two divers enter
the water, the film picks up its game and warns you to hold on tight. From
this point on, there is a noticable improvement to just about every aspect
of the film including Blanchard Ryan and Daniel Travis' [who play as the
couple] acting, camera work [creative and well done], and the eery sense
of not knowing what is around you.
I want to say more about Open Water but want all to experience
the same suspense as I did. However, I do have to tell you one of my [many]
favorite shots of the film. There is a scene where we encounter the couple
floating lazily on the ocean top as they begin to lose hope. The camera
rocks with them and almost seems to accidently dip under the waterline oh
so quickly. What do you see in that brief moment? Ahh, one of the creepiest
shots in shark movie history! Go see the movie!
Final Judgment: I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this
film. I don't want to follow a cliche, but Open Water is just
as cool as Jaws with its different approach to underwater horror.
What is worst, being eaten whole by a giant shark or caught in the middle
of what looks to be a feeding frenzy? Well, if that isn't disturbing enough,
this film is based on a true story. I can only imagine.
Score:  
Open Water was written, directed, and edited by Chris Kentis after
he learned of real incidents of scuba divers being left at sea. Lions Gate
Films was the distributor. |
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