User reviews

Cage Dive is all the film was labelled as when I sat down to witness what I thought was going to be a blatant 47 Meters down ripoff, but as the movie progressed I could totally see the connection to the Open Water franchise.

For those unaware both of the previous Open Water films have involved people who find themselves out in the ocean, the boat gone, floating aimlessly in shark infested waters. Basically 90 minutes of them talking, panicking and waiting to be pulled under. Not exactly the most exciting movies, but certainly atmospheric.

Cage Dive is basically the same formula as we see 3 friends participate in a shark cage dive, but when a freak storm/wave hits the boat they find themselves lost out at sea. Throw in a dramatic soap opera like side story and you have all the makings of something really quite bad.

The thing which sets it apart however is that this addition is filmed in the found footage format which actually plays in its favor. To do essentially the same film again they needed to do something different and it works, the film is still not overly interesting but it has a degree of novelty value for this reason.

The lack of budget shows, though you'll see some great nature shots (Especially whales) don't expect the sharks to be quite as on point as the likes of other bigger budget shark films. To make matters worse their budget didn't buy them a good cast, they really only needed 3 people and honestly I don't think casting did a very good job with any of them.

The actual "Cage dive" gimmick is not played out at all so don't expect 47 Meters Down, expect Open Water 3 which is exactly what it is.

The Good:

Found footage format works for the movie

Has some passable ideas

The Bad:

Poor cast

Lack of budget shows

Ultimately it's a "Talkie" in water

I've seen a fair share of shark movies(about a dozen), and decided to give this one a chance despite the low ratings. Making a good shark movie isn't easy, and the same goes for found footage films. So with this in mind I did not expect too much of it and just hoped for some good shark footage and maybe some nice shark attack aftermath images.

Without spoiling what happens, there will be sharks! Yes! And they look real and credible. Any use of cgi looks pretty good, no obvious rubber or pixelated sharks. This is the best part of the film.

Sadly the rest of the movie is filled with a really bad plot carried out by 3 unlikable selfish characters. The acting isn't awful, but the story and dialogue are. And it doesn't compliment their dull characters.

Maybe the director should make a "sharks only cut". Because that's all worth seeing.

I don't leave a lot of reviews but I felt compelled to help others to not waste their time on this stinker. Found footage movies have been worn out over the years and this is no different than any of the other terrible films to come out in this genre. Do yourself a favour and move along as watching this car crash of a movie will probably make you dumber.

Watched this film today really enjoyed the plot. Also enjoyed the reality of the sharks' behaviour. Compliments to the director and cast

I enjoyed this movie more than I thought I would. After reading some of the reviews I nearly gave it a miss, but being a big fan of shark movies I decided to give it a chance. Despite the cover leading you to think the sharks are a fanciful size, the actual shark footage was believable and thankfully not overdone.

This is a standalone movie but I would put it on a par with the first Open Water movie and I liked it much more than the ridiculous Open Water 2. The acting was good and while some parts dragged on there was enough (including a few jump scares) to keep you invested in the story.

Some reviews have compared this with "The Shallows" and while this movie is different in many ways it was refreshing that the sharks weren't single-minded in their efforts to get their prey. This movie doesn't pretend to be a masterpiece but certainly has some good moments and is worth a viewing.

The very low and very high reviews are hard to take seriously and despite some of the more annoying moments I reckon it's a solid 6 out of 10.

So many bad judgment calls. Just cheered on the sharks!

Acting is awful. Characters are weak with no substance and overall, completely unbelievable. No one behaves appropriately for the situation they're in. Before they're even stranded, they are all so annoying, and as I said, weak/nothing to hold on to. Like who are these people, and does anybody care? Not I. Such a ridiculously stupid script. Special effects, if you want to call them that, are as lame as everything else in this movie. It's extremely slow starting, and it continues on that way thus far. Honestly, I am still watching right now, and I can't wait for them to get eaten! Please tell me they get eaten! It's taking everything in me to finish this thing. I'm not so sure I'll succeed right now. I'm typically not a person who doesn't finish a movie. I think I've only done that twice in my life and I'm no spring chicken.

I've never seen any of the Sharknado movies, but I'd bet that they're better than this, special effects, acting and all. Hopefully that gives you an idea of what we're working with here.

Just a horrible film beginning to end. You will root for these characters to die as soon as possible. Needs more shark. It's really awful, and I really enjoyed the first 2 of this franchise, but this was an uber letdown. Its all found footage style, which is just ridiculous, I know if I was in a life or death situation I'd be worried about my camera or filming anything. Do yourself a favor and stick with the first 2

Open Water 3: Cage Dive (2017)

** (out of 4)

Jeff, Josh and Megan (Joel Hogan, Josh Potthoff, Megan Pelta Hill) are three friends from California who take a trip to Australia where they plan on trying out for a reality show. While there they decide to go cage diving with great white sharks but a freak wave tips over the boat and soon the three are stranded in the middle of the ocean.

This film was made as simply CAGE DIVE but I'm guessing when it was bought for its American release it had OPEN WATER 3 slapped to it. For the most part I enjoyed the first film in the series but the second one wasn't nearly as good, although it did remain slightly entertaining. Part three is when the magic runs out and there are a number of issues with the picture but what kept me turned off the most were the characters.

I will say that all three actors do a good job with their roles but that didn't make me like these people. I mean, they're basically very shallow and annoying people and when it comes to a "lost footage" movie you need to like the people you're spending the time with. Sadly I didn't enjoy their company and especially since a lot of the time they were doing extremely stupid things. I know, in order for a horror film to work you need dumb characters. I'm not going to spoil what exactly happens but I guarantee you will know the scene I'm talking about when it happens.

Another problem with the movie is the fact that it's really not that scary or intense. I'm sure some of this has to do with the fact that I didn't like the characters but the attack scenes aren't all that scary on their own and I'd argue that I never really felt as if they were under attack by these sharks. OPEN WATER 3 isn't an awful movie because it did keep me slightly into what was going on but once the movie was over and I started thinking back on it I ended up finding more and more issues with it.

Open water 3 is a 2017 Drama/Thriller genre film.

The Good

" Okay concept". " Some relationship variety". " Entertaining opening scenes". " Clearly introduced plot". " Good looking characters".

The Bad

" Limited character personality". " Poor tension building". " Shots barely changed". "No scary scenes". " Not believable acting in distress". "Characters easily jumpy". " Dull parts". "Predictable plot". "Uneventful ending". "No twists or turns".

Storyline

The storyline was clear from the start. Anyone can work out the film is about a cage dive and wouldn't be a thriller unless something unexpected happened. Clearly then events were predictable. There were limited twists, and certain parts did drag. You may be surprised to hear then, that the first part of the film before the adventure, borderline impressed me. The plot background was clearly explained which gave the basis for a film anyone could start to get into. After the scene was well set, some playful relationship footage helps entice you in to the drama. In any adventure film, close and believable relationships are essential for audience connection to the characters' emotions. Especially in times of turmoil and activity. Here, these relationships were present, and a little varied, despite not appearing totally authentic. This should have helped continue an engaging plot throughout the film. Unfortunately things rumbled on a little slowly and predictably with no real surprises.

Tension

Tension building is one of the most important aspects of a thriller. Here music wasn't used, so to compensate, expressions and reactions were under the spotlight. Before any real indication of tension, horrific events began to occur. This seemed briefly exciting, but with subsequent tense moments barely distinguishable from normal life, clearly something was missing. Emotions were over-emphasised, during repetitive "easy spooks", yet were hardly believable when something significant actually happened. Camera angles were barely changed, and footage remained above the waters surface for most of the time. Limited variation in shots, dramatic responses and shocking events, kept the film on a fairly dull level throughout. No climax or twist occurred at the end.

Characters

The characters were mostly well played, although emotions weren't always believable. Characters appeared to be selected more for looking attractive, than using a range of expressions to truly captivate the viewer. Limited background information to the characters, meant any troubles faced, didn't tug at my heart strings, or pluck them any faster. I wasn't scared at all throughout the film duration, even though I wanted to be.

Summary

A well introduced and inspired movie, accessible to all. Lack of tension building, slow pace and predictable plot weren't saved by mediocre acting and limited camera angles. I would recommend the viewer watches the introduction until the adventure but little enjoyment follows. Not a disaster, yet barely worth your time.

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I had seen a lot of shark movies. The Reef (2010) and Open Water (2003) are quite authentic but there are also other great movies.

By looking at its cover I could tell it's one of those lame and cheap wannabe suspense movies.

Furthermore, it turned out to be a very good concept: there's a complex relationship between the main characters and the footage is impressive. You have a feeling you're one of them. Worries, struggles, anxiety, fear... it's both horrible and admirable.

I really liked this movie. Somehow different approach, but in a positive way.

Don't expect much.

But at least give it a try.

Cage Dive was an enjoyable watch: it's short (80 minutes), it's an independent sequel (meaning no catch up) and it has good use of the found footage format. It has multiple effective jump scares and paces itself fairly well when the ball starts rolling.

However, the introduction felt quite long as it introduced the characters and story - nothing new to see here but it's adds to the scenario - you ultimately don't care too much about characters in a shark movie, you just want the horror aspect. Some of the story is very basic but you have 'go with it' for the sake of the situation.

The use of real life stock footage and minimal CGI means the sharks look realistic for most of the extended scenes throughout, though a bit more grisly shark footage would have been nice and the cage should have been used much more; there would have been a lot more tension in the cage and I would have loved to have seen it utilised more. The music that's teased is decent enough alongside some punchy sound FX but it could have been more bleak. Same with the acting at times, the lines could have been delivered with a lot more conviction and aggression.

You'll enjoy it if you like the mockumentary format but if you don't, you'll feel disappointed.