The Meg Film Review: All Shark, But No Bite

The Meg Film Review

Five years ago, expert sea diver and Naval Captain Jonas Taylor encountered an unknown danger in the unexplored recesses of the Mariana Trench that forced him to abort his mission and abandon half his crew. Though the tragic incident earned him a dishonourable discharge, what ultimately cost him his career, his marriage and any semblance of honour was his unsupported and incredulous claims of what caused it - an attack on his vessel by a mammoth, 70-foot sea creature, believed to be extinct for more than a million years. But when a submersible lies sunk and disabled at the bottom of the ocean - carrying his ex-wife among the team onboard - he is the one who gets the call. Whether a shot at redemption or a suicide mission, Jonas must confront his fears and risk his own life and the lives of everyone trapped below on a single question: Could the Carcharodon Megalodon - the most abundant marine predator that ever existed - still be alive ... and on the hunt?

Hollywood has been obsessed with shark movies since Steven Spielberg’s Jaws took over the pop culture realm in 1975, with various attempts being made to bring back that feeling of beach terror. But lately studios have been pushing close approaches to the genre, with both 47 Meters Down and The Shallows all going for a different movie demographic. While these all vary in tone, direct-to-DVD markets have strived off the more insane projects like Snow Sharks, Sand Sharks and the visible Sharknado films that have gained cult followings.

So it was apparent Hollywood would be the next industry to jump on the insane trend, pouring a mind-numbing $150 million into Jason Statham's latest endeavour The Meg (short for a 70ft prehistoric shark). A film which has been in development for over 20 years, after the Steve Alten book Meg: A Novel of Deep Terror took us to the ocean. But does it float to shore all these years later? Or stay in the deep end? Our Jordan Samuel finds out in the ComiConverse official review.

Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures

The Meg is a film which doesn’t take itself too seriously embracing its ridiculous concept for two hours, and giving audiences a self-aware summer blockbuster in the process despite not taking many risks. It feels like a homage to over-the-top 90s disaster flicks, with each scene trying to top itself. It’s an enjoyable romp but does have issues mainly involving the limited use of Statham and the cool giant dinosaur fish seen in the trailers.

Statham plays generic war hero Jonas Taylor, the only man who’s completed a super-deep sea rescue mission and survived. The purpose was successful but lost lives of his best friends, causing a gigantic rift in the presence of Taylor as he seeks a life of drink.

Jason Statham (Fate of the Furious) is a movie star who demands your attention with charming oozing all over, but his role as deep-water rescue specialist Jonas Taylor feels wasted. Despite a high performance, I just felt like the director didn't utilise the star in the right means, and instead focused on his cliche British accent.

Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures

In the first 10 minutes, we get some cliche lines like: “There’s something out there!”, “Oh my God!”, “We got this!” that sounds like a bad fan-made YouTube video, but the batshit insane premise makes up for it. The film’s plot is simple and focuses primarily on Megalodon, a giant prehistoric predator long thought extinct, which rises from the deepest reaches of the ocean to threaten humanity. Doesn't that sound like an enduring plot? Well, I don't think it goes insane enough, and that's an issue throughout the run-time.

Movies like Sharknardo while being awful from a film-making standpoint, took risks, and The Meg (2018) fails on that front as director Jon Turteltaub (National Treasure) takes the easy road. Instead of expanding upon the book, he relies on shark cliches and forgets to use solid cast for more than soulless human beings.

The Meg itself looks immense. The film does a good job establishing scale and the elegant creature's movement in the water. Even the interior shots of the underwater space station is a glorious sight to see; I also have to commend the colour grading which gives off a very summery vibe.

Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures

There I even some excellent camera work, which creates some of the most claustrophobic and tense moments in the film. The finale is also beautiful shots and doesn’t rely on the grey action scenes which have flooded cinemas across the globe.

In the end, The Meg is another shark movie which doesn’t take itself seriously but will not push the genre forward. It strikes the right balance of absurdity and serious moments, with passable characters tagging along for a summer adventure. There are decent laughs to be had but do not expect any groundbreaking writing and award-winning dialogue. I enjoyed my time with it despite apparent issues and would love to see the next book adapted one day.

A good little IMAX romp before school starts again, which should keep your bellies full with popcorn.