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6/10
Senior Film Conservator
A definitive 6/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. Below the Sea remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
If you have a thing for black-and-white submarine movies, maybe. But if you hate watching people make terrible decisions for ninety minutes, stay far away. It’s not for the impatient.
Florence Wix is our lead, and honestly, she brings a certain, let's say, committed energy to the screen. She plays the wealthy benefactor with all the grace of a woman who has clearly never had to worry about a submarine air leak in her life. 🌊
The whole thing feels a bit like a stage play that someone decided to film inside a bathtub. The set design is charmingly low-budget. You can practically see the cardboard edges of the control panels if you squint. Don't squint.
The crew members are absolute caricatures. Every single one of them has a look on their face that screams, 'I am definitely going to betray you in the third act.' You don't need to be a genius to guess who the bad guys are. They don't even try to hide it!
There is this one moment where they’re supposed to be in mortal danger from a mechanical failure. But the actors are just standing around talking about their 'expedition' like they’re waiting for a bus. It’s hilariously disconnected.
I couldn't help but compare it to Backbone. Both films suffer from that weird 'we don't quite know how to handle the space' feeling. At least here, the claustrophobia is unintentional, which makes it funnier.
It’s not a masterpiece, obviously. But there’s a certain weird magic to these old flicks. They don't care if you believe them. They just want to get to the end of the script so they can go home. Sometimes, that’s all I need on a Tuesday night. ⚓️