Below

Trying to enjoy a nice weekend, a group of friends are hanging out in a secluded lake to relax, but when they realize that the lake they're staying in is home to a predatory Bull Shark that has snuck into the reservoir and is hunting them down, they must find a way to escape the area alive.

Overall, this was a decent at best killer shark effort. Among its better elements is a simplistic and straightforward storyline that allows the group to come together in this situation. The early scenes of the shark hunting others along the river until it gets to the reservoir where everyone spends the first half getting used to their different dynamics involving the one guy who's far more logical and aware of being in the water with different species while the others are more concerned with their alpha male superiority mocking and belittling him for his presence there. It's not that original or clever, but it manages to work nicely enough to get a glance of who they are and what's going on, which manages to be worthwhile enough at getting this setup and starting on a solid note. When it transitions into the survival instincts of the group on the stranded platform and they have to get to safety, there's a lot to like and dislike about these sequences. While the inherent stupidity and general chaos of the situation is constantly enhanced by the group being utter morons more concerned with putting down someone than trying to genuinely save everyone, the tension remains quite high throughout here with the shark picking them off one by one, stranding every escape attempt they try to make. It's rather fun to see the situation continually escalate due to the shark destroying the raft section by section or picking off someone on a rescue attempt to get to safety, leading to some bloodier than expected sequences and several extended action scenes to try stopping the shark once and for all. Featuring a solid, practical shark and some fine, emotionally-charged chases throughout, it has some decent enough elements here. There are some big factors here holding this one down. One of its biggest issues is the aforementioned stupidity displayed by the characters, not only keeping them in danger but also making them highly unlikable as well. The kids are the same style of confrontational alpha-male wannabes who try to put down and belittle anyone smarter than them, so the idea of doing anything has to be by their hand or else it gets sabotaged, keeping them stranded further throughout here and making everyone that much harder to get behind. That all makes for a frustrating time trying to make it through this group of unlikable teens making moronic decisions that keep them in danger more than anything, as this tends to drag the film down more than anything else.

Rated Unrated/R: Graphic Language and Graphic Violence.

This movie is the dumbest movie I have ever saw the plot was so horrible...in the beginning. I guess the man was so drunk. He didn't even realize that the shark ate his leg off, "stupid" then you have the bully guy on the dock that has nine lives. I don't understand how he died and came back and died again and was still talking crazy to Captain save everybody then you got Miss bouncy who gets to shore and instead of going to get some help she decide to sit there and yell back-and-forth to her friends that is stuck. I thought it was dumb for her to take the trick and drive it into the lake instead of going to find somebody to help them. I'm still stuck on how she was smart enough to make it to shore. She just seemed quite dizzy to me, but then I realize it was pretty smart. How she hook the rope onto the car and the ramp to get her friends closer to shore, but of course that didn't completely work "wasn't so smart after all" then when the girls finally do get to shore instead of getting on solid land, they decide to sit on top of the truck while the shark is still swimming around close to them, "stupid" and Mr. Captain save everyone lays dormant in the shark's mouth again "stupid" I'm so annoyed with this movie that was a waste of my time...I can't even explain this like I really want to. They got me so irritated,I'm yelling at them through the TV,🤦‍♀️ and they can't even hear me,🤷‍♀️but y'all get the logistic of what I'm saying, do not waste your time to watching this movie ....Stupid stupid stupid. From the beginning to the end, including the acting.

An absolute stinker of a movie that should never have seen the light of day let alone actually been put to film.

A ridiculous scenario with even more ridiculous characters played by terrible actors making ridiculous decisions in a ridiculous situation, in a completely ridiculous movie, this thing was absolutely horrendous from begging to end,even my eyes hurt from having watched this ridiculous movie and i feel dumber for having stuck with it, they even have kids yelling up to an ultra light aircraft as if he could actually hear them like a having a normal conversation across a room and believe it or not it gets even more ridiculous from there, stay away from this completely ridiculous stinker at all costs.

Below is yet another chum-bucket shark flick that completely misses the mark, and honestly, it never even gets close to swimming in the right waters. From the opening sequence, it's obvious the production is working with a shoestring budget. Instead of giving us a convincing ocean setting, the filmmakers shot everything on what looks like a lake with a green filter slapped on. That instantly kills any sense of atmosphere or immersion. If your shark thriller doesn't even feel like it takes place in the ocean, you've already lost a huge chunk of credibility.

The sharks themselves don't help. They look like flimsy rubber props you'd expect to find in a discount Halloween aisle. Every time one pops up, the tension evaporates because you can literally see the seams of the CGI or practical effects. When your "monster" feels like something pulled from a bargain bin, there's no chance the audience is going to be scared-or even mildly concerned.

Shark movies already live under an incredibly high bar. Jaws will always be the untouchable gold standard, balancing terror with unforgettable characters. More recently, The Meg and The Meg 2 leaned into bombastic fun and embraced the sheer ridiculousness of giant prehistoric sharks. On the opposite end, The Shallows stripped everything down and delivered razor-sharp tension, a claustrophobic battle of survival that proved shark thrillers can still work. Below doesn't land in either camp. It's not scary. It's not fun. It's not tense. It's just... flat.

The acting doesn't do it any favors. The cast feels like they were handed the script five minutes before shooting, with no real direction or energy behind their performances. The characters never develop beyond generic shark-movie archetypes, so there's nobody to root for or even care about. The pacing drags too-somehow managing to feel rushed in moments where they cram in unnecessary exposition, then unbearably slow when you're waiting for something, anything, to happen.

And then there's the ending. In what might be the boldest-and strangest-choice, the climax revolves around these laughably fake sharks attacking a group of kids. On paper, it's a gutsy move, because horror that isn't afraid to break taboos can sometimes leave an impact. In practice here, it just doesn't work. The execution is so sloppy and unbelievable that it comes across as ridiculous instead of shocking. Instead of gasping in horror, you're left shaking your head at how absurd it looks.

At the end of the day, Below is a missed opportunity from start to finish. It doesn't know whether it wants to be a serious survival thriller or an outrageous B-movie, and it fails to deliver on either front. For shark movie fans like me, it's frustrating, because we keep waiting for the next hidden gem to surface in the genre. Unfortunately, this one sinks right to the bottom without leaving so much as a ripple.

From the HORRENDOUSLY bad acting, to the comical "special effects ", to the shark that looks like it was made of plaster of paris, this is a freaking TERRIBLE film. The plot is exactly as every other shark movie that has ever been made. A group of teens on a floating dock, and they become stranded on it in a river . They are being hunted by a bull shark. I can't even come up with enough words to describe this steaming pile of a movie. Do not waste your time , unless you want to be filled with irritation at the sheer stupidity of this movie. Which is garbage, from the first minute, to the very last.