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Below
In the dark silence of the sea during World War II, the submarine USS Tiger Shark prowls on what should be a routine rescue mission. But for the shell-shocked crew, trapped together in the sub's narrow corridors and constricted spaces, this is about to become a journey into the sensory delusions, mental deceptions and runaway fears that lurk just below the surface of the ocean.
Release : | 2002 |
Rating : | 6.1 |
Studio : | Dimension Films, Protozoa Pictures, |
Crew : | Art Department Coordinator, Art Direction, |
Cast : | Matthew Davis Bruce Greenwood Olivia Williams Zach Galifianakis Scott Foley |
Genre : | Horror Thriller Mystery |
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Reviews
Boring
Ok... Let's be honest. It cannot be the best movie but is quite enjoyable. The movie has the potential to develop a great plot for future movies
While it doesn't offer any answers, it both thrills and makes you think.
It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,
David Twohy's Below cleverly combines two genres which seem to be made for each other, yet had never met up until this film. The atmospheric ghost thriller goes on an underwater ride with the submarine film for quite the unique and eerie experience. Strange occurrences happen aboard a US army submarine during a routine WWII patrol mission, starting with the rescue of several stranded British castaways from a decimated ship, including Olivia Williams and Dexter Fletcher. The Captain (Bruce Greenwood) attempts to keep his crew calm, but apparently it's bad luck to have a woman onboard and soon uneasiness creeps in amongst them. There's a mystery about their quarters as well, involving the supernatural, and pretty soon crewmembers are seeing, hearing and reporting eerie stuff, which adds to the tension. The crew is rounded out by an eclectic bunch of actors including Nick Chinlund, Holt McCallany, Matthew Davis, Christopher Fairbank, and Zach Galifianakis as a guy named Weird Wally who really lives up to the name. There's some spooky moments, high drama between the cast which they pull off well, and a twist ending that explains the ghostly elements. Underrated stuff.
I found BELOW to be an engaging if predictable haunted submarine thriller director by the Australian David Twohy, who was also responsible for the similarly good PITCH BLACK. Both films share stylistic similarities (a trapped cast at the mercy of an unknown killer enemy) but in the end PITCH BLACK has the edge, thanks to the originality and scope of the far-reaching plot. BELOW is more mundane, but not without merit, and it works best as a mood piece rather than a thriller.The star of the show is Olivia Williams (MISS AUSTEN REGRETS), who along with Dexter Fletcher narrowly escapes the torpedoing of their hospital ship during WWII. They take refuge on a US submarine piloted by all manner of familiar and welcome faces (Bruce Greenwood, Nick Chinlund, Jason Flemyng, to name but a few). Pretty soon, weird things start happening (stuff turns on of its own accord and the crew are surrounded by weird apparitions and noises) and then people start dying. It's the kind of stuff we've seen a million times from Hollywood, but straight away the submarine setting had me hooked: I always enjoy the natural claustrophobia that's evoked in these kinds of settings, and it's no exception here. It would be hard to make a film that WASN'T atmospheric and suspenseful on board a submarine.The quality of the script is pretty good, and for a change the acting matches the written dialogue. At least most characters are fleshed out, rather than being one dimensional stereotypes. The film is augmented by some effective CGI work and despite some plot inconsistencies I had a ball with it.
Well, to be honest, I was going to qualify this film as a combination of U-571 and Ghost Ship. Then I saw the cover picture bearing a review stating "U-571 meets Poltergeist" and realized that wouldn't be too original...It's WWII, and the US Sub is lively and excited due to 3 survivors picked up for a shipwreck, one of whom is a female British doctor. Some of the crew is thrilled and edgy about seeing a woman for the first time in weeks, maybe months. Others are aware of sea folklore and believe a woman on a boat is bad luck.The story was absolutely brilliant in my opinion, the thrill and suspense were of the highest level, and the twist was surprising and well presented. The acting was persuasive and honest, and during the entire film I found myself at the edge of my seat, fearing for the lives of the Sub's crew as mechanical problems stacked up.And then they had to destroy what might have been a great film by forcibly, bluntly and stupidly shoving a ghost into it. I mean... why? Honestly, why? In order for DVD libraries to be able to tag this film as horror? What was so important about that?! This could have been an excellent war/psychological thriller film, with an excellent story, a surprising twist, and good acting. Adding the whole ghost part was like taking that kids' puzzle with the shapes, putting the square peg in the triangle hole, and hammering it till the entire thing broke. That simply ruined the film for me, and I'm sure I'm not the only one.In summary - an excellent war thriller. Forcing it into the horror genre ruined it. I'd still recommend it, if you could be forgiving. I wouldn't blame you if you weren't.
The USS Tiger Shark appears to be haunted by the ghost of its dead captain, who died in a mutiny, and now seeks redemption. What is the crew gonna do?Perhaps it's my fault having seen Das Boot that I set my expectations a little too high of David Twohy's Below, a story which has nowhere to go (but down) and its suspense is largely ineffective outside of a few shocks. It is dull and uninvolving, has a disappointing pay off, and above all, just stands as another example of how poor a writer David Twohy is.Sorry, but I cannot recommend this one.