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OPEN WATER Send This Review to a Friend
If you go scuba diving, be sure that the boat taking you to the location has someone in charge who won’t accidentally leave you behind. In “Open Water,” Susan, played by Blanchard Ryan, and Daniel, portrayed by Daniel Travis, are forgotten mistakenly and find themselves desperately alone in the midst of the Caribbean with no way to communicate their predicament. They have a lot of treading water to do.
Sharks are inconveniently in the neighborhood, and the stranded-at-sea couple’s prospects are dim. Their plight creates tensions between them and for the audience, but “Open Water” doesn’t have much opportunity to blossom. Either they’ll be rescued or they will die, and either way, the plot is stuck in a simple-minded horror situation in which viewers have to get their kicks from watching the danger closing in and waiting for the resolution.
To be sure, the film by director Chris Kentis and producer Laura Lau, a husband and wife team, has its nerve-wracking moments and it is well-made on a modest budget with authentic-looking water scenes. But it lacks the overall impact needed to make it more than just a death watch. A Lions Gate Films release.
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