I liked the idea of the movie and its simplicity. But it doesn't work. Perhaps as a short the movie would have maintained the tension in needed to the very end. This version seems to me rather padded out and clunky. The characters are not well drawn and lack depth. The visuals are muddy and, with the one view we have of the couple in the water, monotonous. The director's vision generalized an otherwise compelling situation: a married couple alone in shark infested waters for nearly 12 hours (?). The drama here is how the two deal with the situation; how their physical and emotional defenses breakdown; and how they ultimately battle the elements. None of these things seem developed beyond the obvious. And since I really had no idea who these people are or what they felt, I wasn't gripped by the situation. Also, certain key moments were so vaguely drawn that I was asking myself, what just happened? when in fact I should have been engrossed. All that said, I applaud the film makers daring and the actors' nerve. I only wish the finished movie lived up to all they no doubt put into the project
Review of Open Water
