Open Water sells itself as based on a true story, making use of no special effects whatsoever and links itself to a similar project called The Blair Witch Project. It milks a concept made popular by Steven Spielberg’s Jaws and anxiously tries to combine it with a big dose of realism by making use of a handheld digital home-cam. In the country of origin (the US that is) Open Water became an unexpected hit. The idea was promising, using a very low budget ($130,000 to be precise), but what a disgrace! Note: this review is full of spoilers. On purpose!

A young couple, Susan and Daniel, take off on a well-deserved vacation on the Bahamas, where they decide to go on a group diving trip. The instructors make a fatal mistake, by miscounting and setting out, leaving Susan and Daniel behind in, well, open water. And, like in the (real) movies, you could have guessed, the ocean is littered with sharks.

Promoting your film by emphasizing the realistic nature is not only pretentious, it demands expectations to be redeemed. Some dialogues are a bit forced, especially when Susan and Daniel start to argue with one another after they realize they’re left all alone in the big blue. This is something all couples would do: blame each other and eventually realize they are suffering the same fate. Director and writer Chris Kentis seems to be on the right track with his observations on how couples react in times of peril.

The problem, however, is that you are constantly waiting for things to become exciting, yet they never really do. As a viewer, you want to see sharks, but besides some underwater shots (shot in a cage by the crew, so not making use of digital effects or archive material) and a couple of dorsal fins above the surface, there is nothing more to see. Kentis also makes the mistake of using (inappropriate and misplaced) music and sound-effects, thereby breaking the acclaimed sense of realism. Certain scenes had potential for some good old suspense, but Kentis manages to ruin almost all of those moments and I haven’t even elaborated on the truly lousy filming yet! At times, the pixels of the digital cam rush onto your retina. It is like the famous play Waiting for Godot: what you are hoping for during the entire 79 minutes never comes.

In short: sharky crap (no pun intended)

Directed by: Chris Kentis
Starring: Blanchard Ryan (Susan), Daniel Travis (Daniel)
Running Time: 79′
Release Dates: US: 20 August, UK: 10 Sepember, The Netherlands: 25 November
Official Website