When the choice was between the devil and the deep sea, I always said choose deep sea, at least the journey down would be interesting. Now, I am not sure.
This is based on true events:
An overworked, stressed out couple decide to take a break (don’t we all need one) and go on a vacation to an Island paradise. They think at least the vacation might save their marriage. The beautiful beaches and tropical drinks don’t seem to cool their nerves. They then decide to go on a diving trip.
Very intent upon professing their love for each other they grab the moments on the boat to coo sweet nothings in seclusion, the result of which is nobody really notices them. After taking the head count the divers are let down and given an hour to come back to the boat.
The couple takes fancy to an eel underwater and departs from the group. A mistake in the head count, the boat leaves …..Without them.
They come back up at the given time and find their boat gone. At first they think they drifted apart. They see two boats at a distance and unable to decide which one is theirs wait for one of them to come pick them up. They forget one thing, the current. It takes them away from any boat deep in to the ocean, fading the boats into the horizon.
After 4 hours in water reality sets in. They yell, howl, cry, shout (not necessarily in the same order) with not a soul to hear them. The blame game begins. It’s actually funny to see them arguing (very realistic).
Husband: So, it’s my fault now that the boat is gone.
Husband: If it wasn’t for your stupid job, we wouldn’t be on this vacation right now. Wife: You picked the dates. I wanted to go skiing. You chose diving.
Wife: Well, you wanted an ocean view, now you got one.
As acceptance sets in, they spot a fin nearby.
Wife: Is that a shark?
Husband: Could be a dolphin,
Wife: If it was a dolphin you would go play with it. You think it is shark so you are not going.
Husband: May be.
(Okay, I can’t say they drifted in the ocean for 7 long hours, I got to build up the tension right ;-) …so all the dialogues above. )
The oxygen cylinders begin to weigh a lot, so they let down some of the weights. They pee to keep themselves warm.(Com’on it’s all water ;-))
The constant motion of the water makes the wife nauseated, she pukes. The hubby tells her to float and get some rest, and that he’ll stay watch…..and he too falls asleep.(Never believe guys)
They drift apart. When they wake up they realize they are not together, they spot each other and wade closer, brushing against sharks on the way. They stay still not to attract sharks, occasionally giving a paddle. They realize the currents have taken them far far away from land. They see a liner, but they cannot even signal it with their dive glasses as mirror as it’s too cloudy.
A shark takes the guy’s leg for a fish and rips a heartiful chunk of it. There is blood everywhere attracting more sharks. The wife closes the wound with a strap. The husband cannot bear the wound as the salt water is infecting it further.
Night sets in…bringing along the storm.
The best scene of the film…scarier than the sharks is the red blood water in the light of the setting sun. Sharks begin to play peek-a-boo and Ring-o-ring-o-roses around them. All we can hear is thunder and their shrieks.
Morning arrives bright and sunny. The dive boat guide discovers their bags.
Their hotel room is searched and upon realizing they are lost search teams are sent out. But there was no one to tell them miles away from land, in unfriendly waters amidst hungry sharks that “help is on the way , just hold on a little longer, don’t lose hope yet”
I have read that this movie was done on a shoe string budget. It shows, the shots on the mainland seem to have been taken by a camcorder. They didn’t have the budget like Spielberg to have a mechanical shark. The sharks in this movie are “REAL”. (The Great whites are smaller than I thought)
If, we Indians think that we are safe from sharks, think again. A few weeks ago I was watching on National Geographic about why sharks hibernate to warm waters. They reached a village where women had these awful scars to show from shark bite when they were attacked while fetching water. Any guesses where this village was? On the banks of Ganges. The team searches unsuccessfully for 14 days but doesn’t come across any sharks.
On the last day, their guide takes them to the local fish market. There, in that day’s catch were two baby bull sharks.