*** Official OPEN WATER Discussion Thread (1 Viewer)

[Kirk Gunn]

I went diving a few months back off Nassau. With the quality of that dive crew, this situation is VERY realistic.....

Not sure if I should see this movie or not.

 

[Robert Crawford]

This thread is now designated the Official Discussion Thread for "Open Water" please, post all comments, links to outside reviews, film and box office discussion items to this thread.

All HTF member film reviews of "Open Water" should be posted to the Official Review Thread.

Thank you for your consideration in this matter.


Crawdaddy

 

[Edwin Pereyra]

~Edwin

 

[CraigL]

Saw this again with a packed audience the other night.

Just loved it.

 

[Rich Malloy]

"Will Fact-Fiction Tease Hold Water?" Cute, but I think Dana has either swallowed the "let's promote it like BW" buzz, or has run with this false tangent all on her own.

While "Open Water" attempts a little DV-style verisimilitude a la "Blair Witch", it doesn't incorporate the same conceit that made BWP such an ingenuous little flick. Namely, that it was video'd by those who failed to survive the incident. BWP worked in this regard because the viewer could assume there was no camera crew following along to record the event, hence the added frisson of "this is real!!". Open Water doesn't incorporate the same conceit into its narrative, and is thus a different animal. The most one could say is that the DV-look makes it seem a bit like someone's home video, and hence evokes a bit of additional verisimilitude. In this way, it's no different than tinting film in sepias to evoke the historical past. At any rate, it's nothing like TBWP.

And the "Blair Witch" mockumentary/true story angle is also falsely applied here. "Based on true events" and "these are actually true events" are decidedly different things. The BWP comparison collapses once again on this rather obvious distinction.

No big deal really. But as the impact of TBWP fades into collective memory, what made it an unusually brilliant conceit seems to have faded with it. If those promoting this film are trying to give it a bit of the ol' "Blair Witch allure", which is altogether likely, then a film critic with a clue might wish to note the vast gulf of difference between the two.

Which is not to say "Open Water" is a poor film. It's a potent little story, to be sure, playing on some truly primal fears, and is well-realized by its creators. I read an interview where they referred to a newspaper article they'd read regarding a couple being left behind at the Great Barrier reef which served as the initial inspiration, and they set out to script what those last hours might have been like. I don't entirely understand why anyone would find a movie "based on true events" to be more compelling/frightening/what-have-you than one that was not, but this does seem to factor into the marketing of a great many films. For myself, so long as the events are plausible enough within the established universe of the narrative, I'll suspend disbelief. And, true story or no, once and series of events has been mediated through a particular creator's narrative vision, it's fiction for all intents and purposes.

Truth is stranger, you say? Well maybe you haven't been exposed to the right fiction!

 

[CraigL]

Personally, I thought the BWP was a piece of shit, to be honest. And i've seen Open Water twice.

 

[Rich Malloy]

That's fascinating, Craig.

 

[Edwin Pereyra]

Rich, I think you read more into the article than I did. I do see your point, however, and those who want to take issue with the marketing of these two films certainly can make a case either way.

As you pointed out, it is not a big deal and being an informed viewer, I look at it in the same manner. These days, how a film is marketed and what one actually gets can be two different things.

~Edwin

 

[MatthewLouwrens]

Well, the article was from the New York Times, so I doubt they'd make up...

Oh, never mind.

 

[Edwin Pereyra]

Question to those who have seen this: Is this film shot with the camera rocking along with the boat it is on or is the camera, for the most part, pretty much on solid footing and with some aerial sweeps? Watching this on the big screen with the camera all over the place and giving one a sea sickness feeling might just give me a headache and I just want to know in advance. I'm planning on seeing this today. Thanks in advance.



~Edwin

 

[CraigL]

Just an FYI. when I saw it the second time we had to sit in the 3rd row because it was packed and we got there right before the movie started. one friend was ready to throw up the whole movie.

 

[Rich Malloy]

It's not as bad as some I've seen, but the added element of water movement can get to some people. I think Craig's got it exactly right: if you're that close to the screen, you're gonna have problems. Move far enough back so that you can easily keep the margins of the screen in your direct vision (not just the peripheries). For most folks, having that stable "frame" will keep their stomachs right side up.

 

[Alex Spindler]

Spoilers, of course.



One note, I figured that Daniel died of shock and exposure and not from blood loss. I didn't buy blood loss because neither of them would have survived the night if there was blood in the water.



Of course, once a shark tried to take a bite of his corpse, Susan didn't stand much of a chance being that close to the corpse.

 

[Tom-G]

I have a question for y'all. Before the expedition there is a headcount of the divers but how exactly does the tally get botched?

 

[Alex Spindler]

When the asian girl can't equalize her air, she and her boyfriend get out. Then, when the guy who forgets his mask borrows hers and takes her boyfriend as his diving buddy, they get double counted coming back.

 

[MatthewLouwrens]

Now, I thought about that. I considered the possibility of blood loss, for pretty much the same reason you did. The problem is that they do cut to an overhead shot where you see the two in very very bloody water - and the only source for that blood would be the guy.

As I said back here, that's my one big problem with the film - that I thought it was improbable that they would survive with that amount of blood in the water. But there is no doubt that there was a lot of bleeding.

 

[Doug R]

I enjoyed Open Water but not as much as I hoped. There were a couple great scenes but those great scenes made everything else look not quite as good.



The night scene was fantastic. It really should have gone on more. I truly felt uneasy during that sequence. As well as the preceeding one where he gets bit. I think they needed to expand those even more. The night must have been HELL and to only give it 2 minutes or so, not enough for a true horror classic imo.

 

[Brian Thibodeau]

quote:Question to those who have seen this: Is this film shot with the camera rocking along with the boat it is on or is the camera, for the most part, pretty much on solid footing and with some aerial sweeps? Watching this on the big screen with the camera all over the place and giving one a sea sickness feeling might just give me a headache and I just want to know in advance. I'm planning on seeing this today. Thanks in advance.



I found the image far more stable and much-less puke-inducing than BLAIR WITCH, which I barely survived to the end (although I did) in a theatre.



Another question, though. At my local 9-screen, where projection and sound are often issues, the movie played in what seemed like mono, with the sound coming entirely from the screen, until around the time of the night storm scene, at which point the sound seemed to go into full surround mode, but I was so into the movie, it didn't cross my mind until it was over. Did the filmmakers actually design the track this way, or was it just another case of an inexperienced teen projectionist at my local theatre forgetting to put the surrounds on until three quarters of the way into the picture?



Just wondering.

 

[LanieParker]

I enjoyed the movie Open Water because it didn't need all those special effects and far fetched scenes and crazy camera shots to make me feel like the terror in the two divers was real. It was scary because the situation is one I am sure we all have thought about being in at one point in time. It made me wonder how would I react to the situation... would I freak out in the beginning or would I remain calm like they did for the first few hours. Would I have tried to swim for the two boats when I first became aware of my situation? All these questions ran through my mind as I watched their story unfold.



Open Water was a good movie.

 

[Ruth_F]

I have to admit to being one of the few who did not particularly care for Open Water after anxiously awaiting it. Between the novice actors, the husband's whining "are you mad at me!, and director beating me over the head with how the head count was bothched - I just wanted to put on a shark suit and bite somebody myself.