A friend of mine once confessed to me a fear of swimming in the ocean. He said it was the fear of not knowing what could be underneath him that bothered him more than anything else. After seeing Open Water, I think I agree with him.
Based on true events, Open Water follows stressed-out yuppies Daniel (Daniel Travis) and Susan (Blanchard Ryan) as they take an impromptu vacation to the ocean. The couple takes a open-diving boat trip and get left behind following a head-count mix-up. Stranded in the middle of the ocean and caught in a current that keeps them drifting away from land, Daniel and Susan soon realize that they’re not alone. They’re surrounded by sharks.
Open Water was shot on weekends by director Chris Kentis and his wife, producer Laura Lau. They were basically the crew as well, handling the camera work and location scouting. The movie was shot entirely on digital video and was made for a very small amount of money. Of course, this has prompted comparisons with The Blair Witch Project, which was also made for a paltry sum and was also shot on video. Open Water, however, is a much more “complete” movie with characters you end up caring about and a situation that you might not be able to relate to but which will end up sticking with you for a long time.
The true beauty of Open Water is that, unlike Jaws or Deep Blue Sea, there are no digital effects or animatronics used to create the sharks that share the screen with the actors. None. These sharks are the real deal and they’re sometimes mere inches from the actors. Keeping that in mind, the performances of Ms. Ryan and Mr. Travis aren’t exactly riveting, but they’re believable enough to keep the viewer’s mind focused on the situation. Kentis’ camera work is unique in the way it shows the proximity of the sharks while still keeping you unsure as to whether they’re going to attack or not.
Open Water is notable for what it tries to do with a limited budget and it succeeds on most counts. Unfortunately, the hype around the movie, especially when it was released to theaters in 2004, led people to believe they were going to see something phenomenal rather than a low-budget thriller. Don’t get me wrong. It is phenomenal on a technical level but it’s only average as a scare-your-pants-off thriller. Still, it’s worth seeing. Just don’t expect too much from it and you’ll be satisfied.
4.0 out of 5.0 stars
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