Thinking this was going to be another "DeepStar Six" or "Leviathan", "Underwater" sheds a little of both and relies on constant movement to create a sense of urgency I think is worth your time.
There is nothing new with this flick. A buzzed haired tough trucker type drill worker. Digging deep into the Earth for minerals (instead of..say...space ore hunters...ahem "Alien" or science exploration at the Antartic...um..."The Thing"). Fine. So director William Eubank doesn't fight the tropes instead embraces them and makes it interesting. Not surprising, coming from a former Panavision employee, this is a visual exercise in darkness and dirt and grime and just claustrophobic atmosphere. I'm completely cool with that. Unfortunately, what is lacking is how we should care about the characters. Kristen Stewart plays Norah, the tough cookie who is also a survivalist. Much has been said about her unlikeability OR her supposed inability to act. Both, I feel, untrue. Vulnerable, sad eyed and somewhat sexy (who else can rock a buzzcut and still remain feminine?...Sigourney Weaver?). Her melancholic voice over simply adds to a wounded person underwater. Personally, I think the alien life form seems really unnecessary. It's enough to survive after an accident. I think that was the difference between making it a VERY interesting character study, into a b-movie horror flick. It holds your attention and is perfectly good flick.
There is nothing new with this flick. A buzzed haired tough trucker type drill worker. Digging deep into the Earth for minerals (instead of..say...space ore hunters...ahem "Alien" or science exploration at the Antartic...um..."The Thing"). Fine. So director William Eubank doesn't fight the tropes instead embraces them and makes it interesting. Not surprising, coming from a former Panavision employee, this is a visual exercise in darkness and dirt and grime and just claustrophobic atmosphere. I'm completely cool with that. Unfortunately, what is lacking is how we should care about the characters. Kristen Stewart plays Norah, the tough cookie who is also a survivalist. Much has been said about her unlikeability OR her supposed inability to act. Both, I feel, untrue. Vulnerable, sad eyed and somewhat sexy (who else can rock a buzzcut and still remain feminine?...Sigourney Weaver?). Her melancholic voice over simply adds to a wounded person underwater. Personally, I think the alien life form seems really unnecessary. It's enough to survive after an accident. I think that was the difference between making it a VERY interesting character study, into a b-movie horror flick. It holds your attention and is perfectly good flick.