Stuck in post production limbo for nearly three years because of Disney’s protracted acquisition of Fox, ‘Underwater’ finally gets a low key release. Set in the deepest depths of the ocean, a mining facility is compromised by what appears to be an earthquake. A small group of disparate survivors have to find a way of getting to safety whilst being terrorised by a mysterious creature that has been unleashed.
This takes a pretty basic formula of a bunch of protagonists being picked off one by one by an unknown predator and puts something on a fresh spin on it by setting in underwater rather than, say, in space. Having said that, the events, and the order of deaths are pretty predictable. Also, the script is functional at best, and the poor sound mixing makes it hard to hear the dialogue at times.
However, with a snappy 95 minute running time, a committed performance from Kristen Stewart and decent creature effects, this unpretentious film is entertaining enough.
Rating: 6 out of 10