If you’re wondering what’s 47 meters down, half-naked and afraid, the answer is Mandy Moore. I don’t know this for a fact, I just know it’s true: After they were asked to do the visuals for Kon-Tiki (2012), Important Looking Pirates, a VFX company based in Stockholm, had to improvise and learn how to do realistic shark VFX. Their end product looked so impressive and photo-realistic, that they were hired on another movie that this time featured a lot more of shark footage: The Shallows (2016). One year later they were hired to work on this movie and again we will be treated to some amazing looking shark action sequences. I feel like a total shark slut, with the studios just banking on my obsession with these ancient beasts and making one movie after another featuring nothing more than half-naked girls fighting sharks.
With today’s advancements in CGI and filming techniques, it’s pretty easy to make a sleek looking monster movie. All you need is some semblance of story and actors who actually know how to act in this type of movie and there you go. 47 Meters Down knows what it is, a commercial, formulaic movie about a shark attack and you should know that too. There will not be some complex characters or intriguing parts of the story, although there will be a nice twist and exactly that twist pushed the movie towards the recommendation. This is a decent action movie with great cinematography and excellent camera work. Granted, the script and the general story are really wobbly and clunky, but what are you going to do.
After Lisa broke up with her boyfriend and was feeling a bit blue, she and her sister Kate decided to go down to Mexico to have some fun. Soon they meet a couple of cute guys who recommend that they all go shark-watching. Afraid to look like a party-pooper, Lisa agrees and soon they find themselves out on the open sea. Captain Taylor’s ship is a bit rusty, but a sturdy vessel, so he convinces them that the two of them get in the shark-cage and watch the sharks from there and this is where things start to go bad, really bad…
I don’t know why but I really don’t like Mandy Moore. I mean, I also don’t like Blake Lively, but I find her somewhat acceptable with her hipster, cool-girl vibe. Mandy seems like that bitchy girl from high-school that got on everyone’s nerves. I don’t know any of them personally and I know that this is extremely shallow and based purely on my initial feelings, but it is what it is. This is the reason why I found the whole thing a bit tedious and boring, but this is my personal vibe. I am certain that you will form your own opinion when you check out the movie because it is worth watching (that twist though), especially if you’re a shark movie fan. Luckily they didn’t opt out for a couple of blondes with big titties and small bikinis.
Now, that I come to think of it… And you can always make fun of it, I mean the dialogue is just begging for it with unbelievable and corny lines. This is not another Sharknado, but you wouldn’t know it from that dialogue. You would think that they would make a field day of the tension in this sort of situation, but 47 Meters Down struggles to maintain an engaging atmosphere. Especially when you consider that there are so many potent elements present: oxygen supply, sharks, boat, novice divers… Considering all this, you should lower your expectations a bit for this movie and just take it as it is: a fun little romp, open for trashing. Believe it or not, but this movie got a sequel titled 47 Meters Down: Uncaged. It features the same storyline and totally different actors. If you’re looking for a shark movie that will genuinely scare you and that’s way more realistic than this one, I recommend my personal favorite: The Reef.
Director: Johannes Roberts
Writers: Johannes Roberts, Ernest Riera
Cast: Mandy Moore, Claire Holt, Matthew Modine, Chris Johnson, Yani Gellman, Santiago Segura
Rating:
IMDb Link: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2932536/
