Well yes, I spotted the incredibly low rating, read the large amount of negative reviews and took into consideration all the undoubtedly sincere & well-intended warnings of people insisting not to waste my precious time on this horrible dud of a film. But, being a tremendous fan of cheap and trashy B-horror movies, do you honestly expect me to voluntarily skip a film about a giant FISH that eats teenagers?!? I simply must watch junk like "Beneath"; - it's like an uncontrollable stubbornness I developed over a course of 25 years of watching bad movies. One thing I didn't see coming, however, is that I would actually end up liking Larry Fessenden's "Beneath" and, frankly, I also don't understand that it has such a bad reputation. I'm really not the type of person to blame other viewers that they missed the point, but in this specific case I honestly do feel that "Beneath" is misunderstood and painfully underrated. I reckon that most people expect a bad film with a giant fake fish, and then they subsequently complain because it's a bad film with a giant fake fish. I, on the other hand, was all set to watch a bad film with a giant fake fish, but what I watched was an uncomfortably tense and compelling thriller about the fragility of friendship and the destructive impact of survival instincts. And, as a bonus, there's a giant fake fish that eats teenagers!
Admittedly there are loads of shortcomings, but the rudimentary idea of "Beneath" is terrific and the behavior that practically all lead characters demonstrate is realistic and plausible, and therefore also utterly disturbing. The monstrously oversized fish only eats people, whereas these so-called friends are the ones killing each other. The ambiguous tagline is utmost correct and clever, in fact, as it states: "They are only friends on the surface". When these six people's lives are in mortal danger, and they should collaborate to survive their ordeal together, all they do is increasing their own chances by trying to get rid of the others. And the giant fake fish? He just waits.
I don't have a specific affinity for writer/director Larry Fessenden, but firmly do believe that he made a much better film with "Beneath" than he gets credited for. It starts out as a routine slasher pastiche, with the introduction of six stereotypical teenagers (the cute girl, the jock, the nerd, ...) and even the clichéd old guy (Mark Margolis) warning them about the dangers of the lake, but it gradually turns into a tense survivalist thriller with dark and unpleasant character portrayals. There are some stupid aspects in the script, like the significance of the necklace for instance, but these are compensated by a few ingenious and unexpected deaths and slick plot twists. And, what can I say, I loved the fish! I'll prefer goofy, amateurish-looking monster designs over computer-engineered effects for the rest of my life. The fish-creature in "Beneath" reminded me of the aquatic or alien monsters in charming B-movies from the fifties and sixties; cheap and cheesy, but created with a lot of passion! Ignore all the bad omens and please give "Beneath" a fair chance.
Admittedly there are loads of shortcomings, but the rudimentary idea of "Beneath" is terrific and the behavior that practically all lead characters demonstrate is realistic and plausible, and therefore also utterly disturbing. The monstrously oversized fish only eats people, whereas these so-called friends are the ones killing each other. The ambiguous tagline is utmost correct and clever, in fact, as it states: "They are only friends on the surface". When these six people's lives are in mortal danger, and they should collaborate to survive their ordeal together, all they do is increasing their own chances by trying to get rid of the others. And the giant fake fish? He just waits.
I don't have a specific affinity for writer/director Larry Fessenden, but firmly do believe that he made a much better film with "Beneath" than he gets credited for. It starts out as a routine slasher pastiche, with the introduction of six stereotypical teenagers (the cute girl, the jock, the nerd, ...) and even the clichéd old guy (Mark Margolis) warning them about the dangers of the lake, but it gradually turns into a tense survivalist thriller with dark and unpleasant character portrayals. There are some stupid aspects in the script, like the significance of the necklace for instance, but these are compensated by a few ingenious and unexpected deaths and slick plot twists. And, what can I say, I loved the fish! I'll prefer goofy, amateurish-looking monster designs over computer-engineered effects for the rest of my life. The fish-creature in "Beneath" reminded me of the aquatic or alien monsters in charming B-movies from the fifties and sixties; cheap and cheesy, but created with a lot of passion! Ignore all the bad omens and please give "Beneath" a fair chance.