Below (2024) by Robin Christian

Director: Robin Christian

Year: 2024

Country: USA

Alternate Titles: N/A

Genre: Sharks

Plot:

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.

Review:

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 quick 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 still 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.

Overview: ***/5

A generally enjoyable and likable indie killer shark film, there’s a lot more to like here than expected, which manages to hold this one up a lot more over its nagging issues. Those that appreciate this kind of indie effort or are curious about this kind of killer shark film will have the most to like here, while most others out there should heed caution.