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Two lovely women. A cage. Bathing suits. One hour of air left. Predators everywhere. If 47 Meters Down isn’t a perfect b-movie example of sharkploitation for mass consumption then I don’t know what is.
Set to debut on DVD and On-Demand as In the Deep mere days before it was scooped up by the Weinstein Company last August, retitled, and given a proper summer release, 47 Meters Down is no joke when it comes to nail-biting b-movie terror. This film easily kicked my ass up and down the aisles. It rocks and I love seeing it get a much-deserved second chance.
It’s somewhat surprising to witness just how driven to entertain this movie is. It’s popcorn thrills through and through. With solid character development and significant underwater scares, 47 Meters Down EASILY earns its overall approval score from me. One would think if given the “no faith” vote by its former studio, the movie should “bite” in some way, right? Well, honestly, the only biting happening here is from the sharks. This is a fierce flick and it rattles more than just one cage during its cinematic carnage.
Full of intense underwater footage and great suspense, to think that this movie was NOT going to be theatrically released just blows my mind. Fans of shark-delivered terror will definitely gobble this chaos up; they even might return for seconds. 47 Meters Down is THE perfect b-grade shark movie for b-grade shark movie enthusiasts to sink their teeth into this year.
Starring Mandy Moore and Clair Holt as two sisters who see life through different prisms (one recovering from a bad breakup), 47 Meters Down is a cautionary tale about what NOT to do with two guys – played by Santiago Segura and Yani Gellman – you just happen to meet at your hotel while vacationing in Mexico. Joking. The two sisters at the center of the narrative want to have fun and they want to be adventurous, which is why they party with them the previous night. What they don’t want is to be trapped way down below the surface of the ocean…and that is EXACTLY what happens to them.
With a rumbling internal engine thanks to writers Johannes Roberts (who also directed) and Ernest Riera, this intense tale of survival spends all of ten or so minutes on land with its initial set-up. It soon gets in the water, splashes around a bit, and then shoves us headfirst into the warm water for this tale of survival. Duunnn dunnn... duuuunnnn duun... duuunnnnnnnn dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dunnnnnnnnnnn dunnnn, well, you get it.
The bottom line is that 47 Meters Below is white-knuckled terror from the depths as two sisters must learn to work together while receiving directions up top from Matthew Modine, who plays the aged guide responsible for the two ladies and their safety while in the cage. He takes it upon himself to guide them through their intense nightmare-turned-reality after the cable holding the rackety observation cage snaps, sending the women straight to the bottom of the dive area.
It might be too soon for Blake Lively to return to the ocean, but it’s not too soon for those of us who like our underwater thrills and chills to return to the surf and spray of a sandy shore. 47 Meters Down is a quick reminder why (and how) we love to be thrilled when sharks attack.
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[tab title="Details"]
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for sequences of intense peril, bloody images, and brief strong language.
Runtime: 89 mins
Director: Johannes Roberts
Writer: Johannes Roberts, Ernest Riera
Cast: Mandy Moore, Claire Holt, Matthew Modine
Genre: Horror | thriller
Tagline: No help above, no hope below.
Memorable Movie Quote: "I don't know about this."
Theatrical Distributor: Dimension Films
Official Site: http://47metersdownmovie.com/
Release Date: June 16, 2017
DVD/Blu-ray Release Date: No details available.
Synopsis: On the rebound after a devastating break-up, Lisa (Mandy Moore) is ready for adventure while on vacation in Mexico. Even still, she needs a little extra persuasion when her daring sister Kate (Claire Holt) suggests they go shark diving with some locals. Once underwater in a protective cage, Lisa and Kate catch a once in a lifetime, face-to-face look at majestic Great Whites. But when their worst fears are realized and the cage breaks away from their boat, they find themselves plummeting to the bottom of the seabed, too deep to radio for help without making themselves vulnerable to the savage sharks, their oxygen supplies rapidly dwindling. 47 METERS DOWN is a terrifying tale of survival set in the domain of the ocean’s fiercest creatures.
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[tab title="Blu-ray Review"]
Blu-ray Details:
Home Video Distributor: Lionsgate Films
Available on Blu-ray - September 26, 2017
Screen Formats: 2.40:1
Subtitles: English SDH; Spanish
Audio: English: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1
Discs: Blu-ray Disc; Single disc (1 BD-25); UV digital copy; iTunes digital copy; Digital copy; DVD copy
Region Encoding: Locked to Region A
Wow. 47 Meters Down on 1080p will definitely give your home theater system a workout. The greens of the sea in Mexico and the blues of the sky above are crystal clear. It’s damn impressive through and through – when you consider the majority of the film was shot in a tank – and the details above and below the sea are simply awe inducing. The underwater shark scenes are pure gold. With a 2.40:1 aspect ratio and a crisp and immersive DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 soundfield, this release from Anchor Bay is to be commended.
Supplements:
Commentary:
Fierce, detailed, and lively as hell, the commentary track from writer/director Johannes Roberts and producer James Harris is full of information about the shoot, some stories about Matthew Modine, and attempts to correct the history in the long and winding release.
Special Features:
Anchor Bay loads this release with a few trailers of other releases before settling into the movie. One the movie is over, you have the choice of one supplemental item: Unexpected Originality, a standard making of look at the film with spoilers. Do Not Watch This First. Consider yourself warned.
- Unexpected Originality (11 min)
- Trailers
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