Open Water (2004)
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A couple stranded in shark-filled waters must face the terrifying reality of being left behind at sea.
The story
To spend more time together as a couple, Daniel Kintner and Susan Watkins go on a vacation to the Caribbean. On their second day, they book a scuba diving excursion on a commercial dive boat. While exploring a deeper section of the coral reef, a series of minor distractions causes the dive master to conduct an inaccurate headcount. Believing everyone is safely back on board, the boat returns to the mainland, accidentally leaving Daniel and Susan behind. When the couple surfaces, they realize the boat has departed and they are alone in the open sea.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
Daniel Kintner and Susan Watkins are left behind in the Caribbean after a dive boat mistakenly departs without them. As they drift further out to sea, they face dehydration, sea sickness, and a swarm of stinging jellyfish. Marital tension rises as they blame each other for the predicament. Susan sustains a small shark bite on her leg, which goes unnoticed due to exhaustion. When Daniel discovers a fish feeding on her wound, the sharks become more aggressive, eventually biting and bleeding Daniel. During a thunderstorm, the sharks kill Daniel while Susan watches. The next morning, the boat crew notices their missing gear and initiates a coast guard search. Left alone and drifting, Susan sees sharks circling and, accepting Daniel's death, releases him into the water. To avoid being eaten, she removes her gear and drowns herself. Later, a fishing crew finds a diving camera inside a shark's stomach.
- First release year
- 2004
- Runtime (minutes)
- 79
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Chris Kentis
- Writers
- Chris Kentis · writer; Chris Kentis · director
- Cast and characters
- Blanchard Ryan · Susan Watkins; Daniel Travis · Daniel Kintner; Saul Stein · Seth; Michael E. Williamson · Davis; Cristina Zenato · Linda; John Charles · Junior; Estelle Lau · Affected-Ear Diver
- Genres
- survival horror; independent; thriller; psychological thriller; adventure horror; natural horror
- Themes
- survival; marital tension; isolation
- Tone and mood
- intense; visceral; dread
- Premise and plot tags
- shark attack; castaways; vacationing; low budget
- Source material / true-story basis
- loosely based on the true story of the disappearance of Tom and Eileen Lonergan
- Franchise connections
- Open Water film series
- Content notes
- nudity
- Reception
- The film received mostly positive reviews, praised for its intensity and minimalist filmmaking, though it was less well-received by audiences than critics.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 71% · review count: 196; Metacritic · score: 63 · scale: 100 · review count: 38
- Production trivia
- The filmmakers used live sharks instead of mechanical or computer-generated ones.; The film was shot on digital video.; The real-life events that inspired the story took place in the southern Pacific Ocean, but the film moves the location to the Atlantic Ocean.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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