Cinema tells us that the way to get over a traumatic event – for example, a break-up just prior to wedding nuptials – is to go on a luxury holiday to a far-flung beach paradise. And so, we have newly single Jessie (Nicky Whelan) who heads off on what is presumably a pre-paid honeymoon with a non-descript group of friends rather than her husband. And if cinema tells us anything, it is that such a scenario is going to end badly. Especially if there’s a homicidal shark patrolling the waters. Or at least a big fish that looks a bit like a shark from certain angles.
There is nothing wrong with ticking off a few Hollywood tropes, of following a tried and tested formula as long as you fully embrace doing so. But director Justin Lin and his team ignore the basics, struggling to add any sense of danger or fun that is inherent in similar films such as 47 Metres Down or The Reef. The characters are so flimsy you instantly forget their names and who they are, while the shark attacks – brutal as they are at times – are a confusing blend of bad CGI and stock footage, so you can never really tell what’s going on. The kills are just too messy and numerous, the rising body count removing any remaining scraps of tension or drama.
In the crowded waters of the shark subgenre there is little room for entries lacking genuine thrills, or at the very least, a half-decent fishy antagonist. Maneater contains neither and as such is barely worthy of note. One for the shark completists only.
