Deep Water (2026) by Renny Harlin

Director: Renny Harlin

Year: 2026

Country: Spain/New Zealand/USA/China

Alternate Titles: N/A

Genre: Sharks

Plot:

Taking flight for China, the passengers and crew of a plane are forced to crashland in the middle of the ocean when a fire breaks out, and are forced to come together to survive when their attempts at getting to safety are hindered by man-eating sharks looking to feed on the bodies.

Review:

This was a rather enjoyable genre effort. One of the better elements with this one is the immensely likable setup that allows everything to come together into a thrilling storyline, which manages to offer up a kind of impressive approach. By making the first half focus nicely on the group getting on the plane and the distinct set of characteristics that define who they are as the journey begins ordinarily, it sets everything up on a great note, as its mundane atmosphere belies what's about to happen. The subsequent accident and disaster-style crash that comes about here involves a generally flimsy incident, but there's still more than enough to enjoy here that the resulting sequences involving the plane falling out of the sky, crashing against the waves, and the series of tumbling water flooding the cabin create a spectacular sense of action that offers a great point to enjoy here.

The fallout of that, involving the sharks appearing to take out the survivors and floating bodies of the dead in the water, there's a lot more to like here. The idea of them stranded in the broken wreckage and crumbled remains of the plane serves to get this one in a thrilling mindset already even before the sharks appear, as these come about through some impressive sequences where the characteristic fins slicing through the water to drag someone under in a cloud of blood is a highly impressive one. That gives the film the chance for the ambush sequences later on, where they have to take out the group floating on the surface or grab others while staying in their boat for safety. It has a lot of great attacks that show off the inability to notice when they're coming or how they're going to prevent the later sequences from playing out, which are just as much fun. Given the sequences show off impressive effects with the sharks when we get to see them, there's a lot to like here to hold this one up.

There aren't too many flaws here, but there are some issues that bring it down. The main issue with this one is the immensely problematic and cliché-ridden story about the self-centered, egomaniacal joke of a character who is in the group of survivors and is frustratingly never a part of the attacks throughout here. The fact that he's already bad enough of a character is present in this kind of story, but to then never give them any kind of comeuppance where the sharks even come close is a bad touch that makes everything feel even more problematic than it is. The other drawback is the drastically bland and underwhelming finale where the forced melodrama of the finale where it tries to offer an emotionally cathartic resolution to what's going on with his trip and what's going on, making for such a hackneyed attempt at pulling on the heartstrings that it misses the mark. Overall, these all hold this one down overall.

Overview: ****/5

A strong and rather likable disaster film/killer shark hybrid, there's a lot to like here which gives this more than enough to hold itself off from the few minor issues which are present here. Those with an appreciation for this style or approach or who are fans of the creative crew will have a lot to like here, while most others out there turned off by these issues will want to heed caution.