I now have two new names to add to my list of filmmakers who’ve scared the crap out of me while reinforcing my fear of sharks. Director/cinematographer Chris Kentis and producer/cinematographer Laura Lau invested blood, sweat, tears, time, talent, energy, etc., etc., etc. in their little indie film, “Open Water.” Is “Open Water” as scary as the trailer makes it out to be? Most definitely - maybe even a little scarier because the terror felt by the actors feels so realistic. Of course, that might be because Daniel Travis (‘Daniel’) and Blanchard Ryan (‘Susan’) really were floating among sharks, barracuda, jelly fish, and other menacing ocean creatures.
“Open Water” follows a busy couple who decide, pretty much at the last minute, to take off on vacation. Early on, we learn they don’t spend as much time on their relationship as they do their work, and the vacation’s a way to disconnect from cell phones, computers, etc. and reconnect emotionally.
Daniel (Daniel Travis) and Susan (Blanchard Ryan) don’t come across as the easiest couple to relate to or watch. When they don’t listen to the instructions from the guy who runs a dive boat and get left behind, you kind of feel they had it coming. They bicker, they place blame, and it’s only after they’ve been floating around lost for a while that you begin to really feel sorry for these people. As the magnitude of their isolation sets in, your heart goes out to these two – despite their sometimes obnoxious behavior.
Kentis and Lau don’t resort to any CGI effects. The sharks are real. The actors are really in jeopardy. And it doesn’t matter what type of precautions were taken to insure a safe film shoot, anytime you work in that kind of environment, there’s a real chance of getting seriously injured. Watching “Open Water,” I wasn’t really sure if I was worried about the safety of the actors, or if I was really into the characters they were portraying and what was happening with them as they fought to survive in terrifying circumstances. It was probably a mixture of the two, and that’s okay. Either way, it worked. I felt as though I was floating along right beside them.
The filmmakers went the inexpensive route, using digital video, infusing the film with a home movie feel. Some critics have compared it to “Blair Witch Project,” but even though this one’s actually set in the water, I didn’t get the feeling of motion-sickness with “Open Water” that I experienced with “Blair Witch.” Once the actors enter the water, the shots are clean and tight. Kentis and Lau didn’t get real gimmicky with their work, letting the actors and the circumstances of the story get the point across.
The fear of what’s circling underneath your feet just out of sight is palpable in “Open Water.” Had someone touched me from behind during the screening, I would have screamed my lungs out. “Open Water” is a white knuckle thriller that’ll have you thinking twice before taking up diving as a hobby. And it'll reinforce your fear of sharks.
GRADE: B
"Open Water" was directed by Chris Kentis and is rated R for language and some nudity.
