Something in the Water

Something in the Water is a new thriller directed by Hayley Easton Street, who makes her real directorial debut with this film after some short films.

Before a wedding, the bride's group of friends decide to take a boat trip before the wedding. When one of the friends is bitten by a hair while swimming, the friends rush back to the boat.

Due to the panic that has arisen, they hit a rock during the return trip, which causes the boat to sink and the five of them end up in the open water with a dangerous shark lurking.

This film is being sold as a mix between the films Jaws and Bridesmaids, only without the talent behind these films. Due to the poorer script and direction, you don't really care about most of the characters during the film. The more novice actresses receive little or no guidance.

When the characters are also stupid because of the weak script. Or making separate decisions only makes you care less about them. You almost hope that the shark catches them quickly, so that the film can end earlier.

I usually enjoy shark movies, and even when they are bad, which most of them are, I can typically find a few enjoyable aspects in them. "Something in the Water" initially seemed promising despite its low rating, but I decided not to let that influence me.

The movie tells the story of five women who meet because of a wedding. Before the big day, they decide to have an adventure and sail out to a deserted island in a small boat. Early on, the main character and her ex-girlfriend, who no longer get along due to a violent assault they suffered in the opening scene, are left alone on another part of the island. The other women justify leaving them there by saying they need to work through their differences and rebuild their friendship.

Our protagonist is traumatized by the assault and continues to struggle with the trauma daily, a trope that feels overused and fails to generate sympathy. Instead, it creates a protagonist who is difficult to root for. In fact, most of the characters are unlikeable, and this only worsens as the movie progresses.

The women eventually reunite and go swimming in shallow water. The first shark attack is laughably bad, with unrealistic execution and awkward acting that makes the scene feel uncomfortable and strange. The lack of gore in these moments robs the film of any sense of real threat.

Soon, the five characters are stranded in the ocean with a sunken boat and a persistent shark that refuses to leave them alone. While I can suspend disbelief about the shark's relentless behavior, since it is necessary for the plot, the constant poor decisions made by the characters are impossible to ignore. This makes them even more annoying and unlikable.

The movie is also highly unrealistic, and the shark's behavior becomes increasingly absurd as the story progresses. Ultimately, the film has little to offer beyond its basic premise, which could have been enjoyable if not for the poor decisions, irritating characters, and implausible scenarios.

On the positive side, the shark effects are decent, and the overall production value seems solid. These elements show that the movie had potential, which makes its failure even more disappointing. [4,0/10]

"Something in the water" looked different enough from all the other shark movies we've had in the past. Its a British "open water" with more characters. So in some ways was more interesting and could do more. But does it sink or swim? Unfortunately it sinks.

The movies just not very good. Most of the characters are more annoying than the screamy girl from "Jaws 2," and there are alot of unlikely things said or done in the movie. The order of deaths and when they happen is also mostly predictable.

But there are a couple of decent moments in there, and the CGI is used sparingly. But this is probably because its bad when it starts to get used more toward the end.

Surly if your a film maker you would have watched other films of this ilk. Either because you like those sort of movies and it inspired you to try something different or you've done some research by watching or reading stories about being stranded with sharks. But alas it's the same old trope.

To be honest, it's fairly limited using this sub-genre. But with some clever thinking you could add some twists or tricks and you could make it a bit more interesting. For example they did have some basic equipment that they could have used in a clever way, but it is quickly forgotten and never mentioned or used again.

The research on the behaviour of sharks is wholly inadequate and inaccurate. Again, with a bit of thinking you could have applied real world experiences and observations in to the story, but nothing.

This movie ended up being a bit of a.

This film was absolutely fine, but don't be expecting anything new... you won't find it here. I liked the characters, they had a strong friendship and on the whole they behaved fairly sensibly. The actresses did a fine job. And the setting is beautiful. So that's all good!

The problem is that we've seen it all before... it's very predictable and that's a real shame. There also isn't enough shark/s in my opinion- which unfortunately makes it a pretty tame watch.

It's one of those movies that you'll watch once and that's it. Definitely doesn't compare to the likes of The Shallows or even 47 Metres Down.