A great setting for a scary story...
This stylish and suspenseful submarine thriller,
from the director of 'The Arrival' & 'Pitch
Black', will keep you on the edge of your seat
throughout. Considering the relatively low
budget, this film looks spectacular and is one
of the best in it's genre. Director David Twohy
reminds me very much of M. Night Shyamalan in
his mastery of mood and visual candy. He will be
behind the camera for many great films and for a
very long time.
This inspired and ingenious marriage of the
submarine thriller and a ghost story starts off
magnificently... After thirty minutes I was sure
I was in for one of the best films of the year.
Unfortunately the film becomes a little too
careful and predictable to be fully appreciated.
'Below' starts off as a great film and ends as a
pretty good one.
Olivia Williams, who has one of the most
cinematically gorgeous faces in the world, does
a super job in what amounts to the lead role.
She carries a powerful presence amidst a strong
male cast and is sympathetic enough to make us
care about the safety of this boat's crew.
Olivia Williams should really be a bigger star
in movies than she is... I really want to see
more quality roles for her!
One great thing about this film is it's use of
the submarine clichés. Every submarine film has
to have the obligatory scenes... but some recent
examples like 'U-571' and the surprisingly poor
'K19' seem to be filled with those scenes
unnecessarily. They are just there to be
there!!! 'Below' actually has legitimate reasons
for the scenes and shows them in unique,
inspired and original ways.
This is a very good scary film... definitely
worth seeking out.
©
Written by TC Candler
Richard
Propes' Comment
Why is it so
hard to make a decent flick set on a submarine?
The potential for a harrowing, scary flick is
amazing and the boundaries of such a film seem
so obvious that it seems like there ought to be
more than just "Das Boot" that's managed to make
the setting work. "Below" comes close, but is
ultimately unsatisfying and predictable. The
film tries too hard to be frightening and
doesn't take full advantage of obvious
opportunities. There are too many loose ends at
the end of the film, and ultimately the audience
is left wondering "What did I just see?" The
film is closer in result to Twohy's "Pitch
Black" than his much more cohesive "The
Arrival."
Jacob
Hall's Comment
N/A
