Cast: Samuel L. Jackson, Saffron Burrows, Thomas Jane, LL Cool J, Michael Rappaport, Stellan Skarsgard, Jacqueline McKenzie
Director: Renny Harlin
U.S. Distribution: Warner Bros.
U.S. Release Date: 7/26/99
Running Time: 1:45
MPAA Rating: R
Extreme Jaws might be a more appropriate title for this tense thriller.
If you are looking for some breathtaking special effects and jolting action sequences, this is your movie.
In a summer full of action-packed films, Renny Harlin has a big-budget entry in the field. His monsters are greater in size and number than those in Lake Placid and the like; the FX are as impressive as most of the other summer releases (Star Wars: Episode I, The Haunting, etc.).
Sadly, Deep Blue Sea is also much too predictable.
Stop me if you've heard this one: A lady scientist experiments on the brains of sharks, which grow in size and begin exhibiting strange behavior (like eating everything and everyone in sight). Under the cover of a violent storm, the now-humongous beasts break free of their confinements and make quick work of most of the cast members; all-the-while managing to destroy the entire Sea city.
There is also an ever-present claustrophobia factor, some gaping plot holes, and too many "Bite Me, PLEASE!" characters. (Exhibit One: Samuel L. Jackson)
But alas, the survivors fight back. If they've learned anything from Jaws movies, it is that you can kill a great white by electrocution or by blowing it up with dynamite. Both methods prove successful here.
Predictable and unoriginal.
It is also very exciting. By my estimate, Deep Blue Sea is (good for) a scare-every-minute-or-so.
© 1999, Delton Perrodin