Under Paris (2024)

Under Paris, a French shark horror film, briefly dominated Netflix’s most-watched movies chart in the spring of 2024. Could this entry into the already-crowded shark flick market rise above the competition or is it just another stinker? Having just watched the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics, which took place on the Seine River, I thought it’d be fun to watch a movie about a shark prowling those same waters.

The film opens in the Pacific as a group of marine researchers, led by Sophia Assalas (Bérénice Bejo) search for a tagged mako shark they’ve named Lilith. Having picked up the tag’s signal near the Great Pacific garbage patch, a dive team led by Sophia’s husband, Chris (Yannick Choirat,) enters the water to collect a blood sample from the shark. Once she’s been sighted, the team notices that she’s grown substantially larger since the last time they’d seen her. In fact, she’s grown impossibly fast. They also notice that other mako sharks in the area are hunting in packs — a previously never-before-seen behavior. When Chris attempts to take the blood sample, the docile Lilith suddenly becomes violent and kills him and the other three divers.

We flash forward three years and Sophia now works in a Paris aquarium. She’s approached by Mika (Léa Léviant,) who works with an environmental research group called Save Our Seas. Mika informs Sophia that Lilith’s tag is still pinging a signal. She’s been tracked from the Pacific Ocean into the Seine River in Paris. Understandably, Sophia finds this hard to believe but is convinced when the shark begins attacking people along the river’s edge. She teams with police diver Adil (Nassim Lyes) to try to find and kill the shark. Mika and her partner, Ben (Nagisa Morimoto,) attempt to protect the shark by switching off the tag’s signal so she can’t be tracked. With a triathlon set to kick off in a few days, Sophia and Adil must try to convince the mayor of Paris (Anne Marivin) to cancel the event or risk serving up a river full of swimmers to Lilith.

As with most shark movies, there’s a tendency to make comparisons to Jaws. In fact, director/co-writer Xavier Gens invites this by using one of the main plot elements from the classic 1975 thriller: the mayor who refuses to listen to logic because due to economics. But, other than that, there’s little else in common with the still-undisputed champion of the shark horror sub-genre. Under Paris takes an environmental angle on the shark’s ability to adapt to fresh water and grow rapidly. It also makes clever usage of its Parisian setting, incorporating the catacombs and unexploded ordinance from World War II into the plot.

Unfortunately, though, when the water finally settles and the credits roll, Under Paris reveals itself to be just another less-than-adequate, CGI-powered shark flick with a premise stronger than its script. There are no interesting characters. The shark scenes are marred by iffy computer effects (although the opening scene is well-done.) And the premise gets more ridiculous as the movie progresses. It might not be as out-there as Sharknado but it’s definitely nowhere near Jaws. Or even The Shallows.