Ahoy, squirts! Quint here... Oh boy! Oh boy! I'm so ready to see OPEN WATER... "Frighten you as much as Jaws did..." Those are some mighty tall words, but I'll be damned if I'm not psyched to see this film! Two more days, then you folks'll really be in for it when I write up my review... providing this film lives up to the hype... And if these reviews are any indication then I'm sure it will! Read on!
hey moriarty
first time sending you anything. enjoy
This past Friday I checked out a screening of OPEN WATERat the Stonybrook Film Festival on LI. I have been reading about this movie ever since it premiered at Sundance, and was really looking forward to it, and thankfully, I was not let down.
The movie was almost perfect. the one thing that bothered me was the digital camera work. It made me naucous. it was probably because the movie was filmed on location on a lobster boat (i think), so thats probably why i felt sick. Yet i think that there was no other way to film this movie, and luckily the movie is good, so i will put up with the upset stomache.
the script- there was not much to it, but when the actors spoke, everything felt genuine and honest. Most of dialogue is between the two main characters, an everyday married couple, and it worked.
The direction- Minus the above mentioned info, was impressive. the shots of the sharks in the water, (especially in the lightening) was intense, and i have no doubt it was because of the director cris kentis. a director to watch out for.
the acting- wow was it good. Daniel Travis was strong as the husband, but it was blanchard Ryan who was incredible. These two actors goes through so much, cold water, real sharks, and still give amazing perfomances.
anyways, this is a great film, its extremely entertaining and i am so excited this film is getting a wide release.
call me emodork if you use this.
This review is a rebuttal to the review I ran last night from "Mr. Stroppy." I think Sr. Stroppy was really trying to get us to turn down the ol' hype-meter, but the below reviewer cries Bollocks at that and demands you prepare yourself for this film! Read on for more info!
HARRY,
A WORD about OPEN WATER.
Mr. Stroppy should take a vacation with the sharks. Far from lacking, OPEN WATER is an apt, pleasantly simplistic SUSPENSE THRILLER. I viewed this film with rigid muscles, and watched it defeat nearly all of my expectations. What “Mr. Stroppy” shunned out with his thick head was how satiable the film became with all its grimness and how simply fucked up it got. In a great way. Of course all you are left wondering is “will they be rescued, or will they be eaten?” If that enigma doesn’t hit you, go ahead and chum yourself into the sea.
DO NOT LISTEN TO “MR. SLOPPY”. I refuse to let awkward, pompous reviews detract from such potent thrillers as this. OPEN WATER is a display of emotional progression, the extraordinary hierarchy when humans are faced with real fucking danger (remember what the old women says in MINORITY REPORT?). If the film is an exercise in anything, it is in tautness, in fleeting suspense through emotional collapse. Every swift thrash of those sharks destroyed my nervous system, and as time peeled away, we became as frayed as those people in the water. The film intertwined the ethereal being of the natural world with the meaninglessness of those two “bobbing heads” daily routines and worries, and it do so expertly. It escalated deftly, becoming not about her job or the money they paid for the trip, but SURVIVAL.
With the god-like island sounds and chants, and the storms and waves; the film became much more than a throw away thriller. Do not dismiss it as such. There is something wickedly cool going on in OPEN WATER. Don’t let thickheaded and pretentious minds shat on a ripping experience for you. Calling the cinematography “horribly amateurish” is not only hypocritical (”the wobbly camerawork becomes a blessing in creating a harrowing, documentary-type feel”) but ignores the expert recreation of realism the film goes for. The sharks are real, man, the threat feels real. There is always present that terrible fear (that we all got after Jaws) of WHAT IS SWIMMING BENEATH ME?? Those fleeting shots of ominous sharks were absolutely frightening. The film was relentless and dark, and breaks every Hollywood notion that comes across your brain.
OPEN WATER is good work, a simple film with thrilling accents and a quiet nail peeling suspense that should frighten you as much as JAWS did. And this time, it’s personal.
-The Italian Stallion
