The Reef

Watched this on Netflix. Really good low budget Shark movie that sits above all other shark flicks except Jaws (1975). The direction and pace of this film is superb with lots of suspense and the acting from all the cast is great, I actually cared for the characters, not something I often feel! Big thumbs up.

The Reef is a good film it works the way a true thriller should, it doesn't reveal its hand all at once but instead builds and builds.

The characters are well played by a great Aussie cast all the actors are very believable and likable. Unlike Open Water in The Reef you do get to see a shark in fact its a very big and dangerous shark. The shark parts of the film are handle extremely well.

Based on a true event, The Reef feels very real. This sense of reality makes this shark film scary indeed it's what makes it stand above most other shark films. For me it sits somewhere between Open Water and Jaws.

Definitely worth checking out.

Has similar premise as Open Water but is done a lot better. The characters are a lot better (no endless bickering for 3/4 of the movie) and the shark is both a real threat and clearly seen throughout the movie. This was the movie i was hoping Open Water would be.

The film is not fast paced or action orientated with all the attacks being quick but impactful. We have a lot of pov shots at water level and a views of under the water to slowly build the tension. I found this more than effective.

The direction is tight and the acting is decent. The shark itself seems to be real footage of a great white mixed in with the actors and it works really well. In fact i would say this is one if not the only shark film that does this seamlessly.

Without a doubt The Reef is one of the best shark films ever and i highly recommend it to anyone that loves animal attacks films or sharks. SYFY should take note on how to do a animal attack film right by watching this film.

The Reef (2010) is a movie directed by Andrew Traucki. It's a new generation shark movie, and probably the one that gets closest to being a horror movie. It's an Australian movie so the actor's accent might be a problem for non-native English speakers that aren't used to it, I recommend toggling the subtitles on if possible.

The movie starts off in medias res, with a group of friends heading to Indonesia with a sailboat. We find out eventually, that two of the protagonists had a relationship in the past, that functions as side story that isn't too relevant, especially towards the end. During the trip the sailboat hits the bottom of the reef and tips over, making it unable for the characters to proceed. They choose to swim to the nearest island, about 12 miles from the shore, but a great white shark that swims in the area won't make things easy for them.

As I am always kind of skeptic about new shark movies, I didn't have high hopes for this one either. But it turned out to be better than what I expected it to be. As I said, it has some jump scares and it's the most realistic shark movie I have seen. It is not based on a true story but it could have easily been. It's the only shark movie that made me think twice before jumping into deep waters again.

In my opinion, the acting was good, with a lot of screaming and macabre reactions, that really gave me the feeling that I was watching a real event and not a movie. It's nothing too extreme, but that's exactly how a horror shark movie should be, realistic.

I would recommend this movie, alongside with Steven Spielberg's Jaws, as the shark movies you need to watch as a shark fanatic. Solid plot, good cast and overall a more than average shark movie worth watching.

"Your more likely to die from a bee sting then get killed be a shark." After the boat that they are on gets damaged and is unable to move, five friends must decide to wait it out on the boat or swim to an island. When the decision is made they soon begin to regret their choice. First of all I will say that I did enjoy the movie. I have not yet seen the movie "Open Water", but after watching this I feel like I have. This movie is repetitive but keeps you watching. People swim, they see a shark...over and over. Like "Open Water" this is a true story, which helps in the enjoyment of this. There really isn't much more to say about this movie, not too much to it, but it is entertaining. Overall, I liked it, but if you have seen "Open Water" this may be too much of the same thing to fully enjoy it. I give it a B.

Would I watch again? - I don't think I will.

*Also try - Frozen & Open Water