Where to watch 47 Meters Down
3 Stars
47 Meters Down had a strange path to the big screen. It was originally slated to be dumped on VOD/DVD by the Weinstein Company before Byron Allen’s Entertainment Studio’s purchased the rights and gave it a theatrical release. That switch provided to be fortuitous for Allen’s burgeoning studio giving them a solid early summer hit. If 47 Meters Down (previously titled In the Deep) would have skipped a worldwide first-rate run on the big screen audiences wouldn’t have had the effective and very well-done film easily available to them. This is a movie that defies modest expectations and delivers on its simple plot gimmick.
On the rebound after a devastating break-up, Lisa (Mandy Moore) is ready for adventure while on vacation in Mexico. Even still, she needs a little extra push from her adventurous, free-spirited younger sister, Kate (Claire Holt). They met a pair of attractive guys at a local bar and make plans to go out in the deep-sea and submerge themselves in an iron cage while being circled by Great White Sharks. During the expedition Lisa and Kate find themselves trapped on the ocean floor after the winch breaks on their cage. With a dwindling air supply and man-eating predators on the loose, it becomes a tale of survival of the smartest and a race against time for Lisa and Kate.
47 Meters Down isn’t as captivating as last summers’ The Shallows, but it still manages to provide a few thrills and entertain throughout its running time. Mandy Moore is well cast and her co-star, Claire Holt, is able to create chemistry between the two screen sisters before the story gets them into the steel cage and submerged. Johannes Roberts does an admirable job with the visual element and maintaining interest when the story momentarily lulls. 47 Meters Below deserves its spot on big screens throughout the country, but I imagine that it will reach a much wider audience on home-video platforms.
Director: Johannes Roberts
Stars: Mandy Moore, Claire Holt, Matthew Modine