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Bruce Greenwood, Olivia Williams, Holt McCallany, Scott Foley, Zach Galifianakis ... see more see more... , Jason Flemyng , Dexter Fletcher , Nick Chinlund , Andrew Howard , Christopher Fairbank , Matthew Davis , David Crow

Reflecting studio executives' taste for material that crosses genres, this film from director David Twohy and co-screenwriter Darren Aronofsky mixes the war movie and supernatural thriller genres. Aft... read more read more...er they rescue a trio of survivors that includes a nurse, Claire Page (Olivia Williams), from a British hospital ship sunk by the Nazis, the crew of the American submarine U.S.S. Tiger Shark comes to believe that their vessel is haunted. The unexpected death of their commander forces first officer Lt. Brice (Bruce Greenwood) to take command, trying to avoid a German destroyer on the hunt for his ship, while investigating the series of mysterious incidents that are terrifying his crew. Is the Tiger Shark haunted, or is there something otherworldly inhabiting the waters where the sailors are currently trapped? Originally entitled "Proteus," this project was slated to be Aronofsky's follow-up to Pi (1998), but the writer/director opted to helm Requiem for a Dream (2000) instead. Below co-stars Scott Foley, Zach Galifianakis, Dexter Fletcher, and Holt McCallany. ~ Karl Williams, Rovi

Flixster Users

44% liked it

7,159 ratings

Critics

64% liked it

67 critics

R, 1 hr. 45 min.

Directed by: David Twohy

Release Date: October 11, 2002

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DVD Release Date: March 11, 2003

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Flixster Reviews (418)

  • jmanard52
    August 22, 2010
    jmanard52
    Solid thriller set on a sub during WWII. It was actually quite good. Was surprised by this movie I had never heard of.
  • stuartb1234
    January 7, 2012
    stuartb1234
    Good mixture of horror and war. Spooky goings on aboard a submarine during WWII, which is being stalked by a German destroyer as well as whatever is on board with them.
  • LorenzoVonMatterhorn
    August 16, 2011
    LorenzoVonMatterhorn
    "Six hundred feet beneath the surface terror runs deep"

    In the dark silence of the sea during World War II, the submarine U.S.S. Tiger Shark prowls on what should be a routine rescue mission. But for the shell-shocked crew, trapped together in the sub's narrow corridors a... read morend constricted spaces, this is about to become a journey into the sensory delusions, mental deceptions and runaway fear that lurk just below the surface of the ocean and deep inside the human psyche.

    REVIEW

    'Below' is actually three genres, an ultra-realistic WWII submarine adventure, a tense psychological mystery thriller, and a horrific ghost story. That the horrific ghost story portion is no where near as effective as the other two doesn't degrade writer-director David Twohy's achievement. It might, however, partly explain the movie's abysmal box office (less than $500,000; the sets probably cost more than that) . Twohy struggles a bit trying to integrate the genre elements. He needed have bothered. Jettisoning the ghost story entirely wouldn't have hurt the film. The three most horrific scenes don't involve the supernatural at all. One involves the sub sitting on the shallow bottom and being torn to pieces by huge hooks attached to a destroyer's anchor chain (Never seen that before; it's frighteningly plausible). The second involves divers being surprised by a school of big manta rays. The third is searching for survivors in darkened compartments incinerated by a blast of escaping hydrogen from the ship's depleted batteries.

    'Below' is cast with a crew of very competent unknowns, such as Bruce Greenwood and Matt Davis. Olivia Williams is probably the most familiar face. However, even she looks considerably different here. The use of unknowns works well for a submarine movie, slightly less so for a mystery. However, it doesn't work well at all for a ghost story, especially considering the large cast, since some two similar faces become confusing. Further Twohy should have studied James Wong's terrific directing of 'Final Destination'. Wong correctly let unseen forces create create his horror rather than shock ghost effects. Twohy does get it right, however, in a scene when one officer studies his own movements in a mirror and finds his reflection is not the same. This scene creates a whole new spin on the classic Marx Brothers scene in 'Duck Soup'. It's the scariest supernatural bit in the whole movie.
  • blkbomb
    May 30, 2011
    blkbomb
    A very ineffective supernatural thriller. I thought it would be a little better since Arronofsky's name was attached to it, but I was wrong. The cast was mediocre at best and overall the movie failed with being scary and with being thrilling. It seemed like a bad M. Night Shyamal... read morean film.
  • helpahorse
    May 3, 2011
    helpahorse
    Great movie. It's got suspense, intense moments, good acting, solid plot, and it's actually scary.

    The plot was pretty straight forward after everything was explained at the end. Usually mystery/suspense movies have plot holes or confusing storylines that make no sense, but t... read morehis one didn't!

    When I heard about Below, I just passed on it because it seemed like a dumb film. It was actually very good. Awesome movie. I'd watch it again.
  • flixsterman
    January 16, 2011
    flixsterman
    As a submarine film it's technically absurd, but as a thrilling edge-of-your-seat ghost story it's not half bad. *NOTE: Zach Galifianakis as 'Weird Wally' is a brilliant bit of casting.
  • superclerk25
    September 15, 2010
    superclerk25
    A decent ghost movie with a really good murder mystery behind it. The cast does a really good job as we follow this WWII mystery from the inside of an American U Boat.
    While most of the scares weren't as spooky or effective as I would have liked the story made up for the short c... read moreomings. I liked the characters and all of the major set pieces were effective and well done.
  • Stinger839
    September 11, 2010
    Stinger839
    One of the rare flicks that delivers what it promises on the box - this is a truly great marriage of light-gore ghost story and tense submarine thriller. Zach Galifianakis plays such a great supporting role in this flick that I mistook him for Richard Dreyfuss the WHOLE film (not... read more knowing the year of this film when watching). The expected twist (which actually packed more of a punch than your typical twist) is what lowers this to the 3.5 level instead of 4 stars, but removing that element would have utterly undone the whole structure of the film so if you have more tolerance for twist endings than me, you may enjoy more, and if you have less then you may utterly hate this whole film as a result.

    I applaud this film for not relying on typical sound-cued jump scares and instead built believable tension and mounting madness. You feel like you are in this cursed sub with these guys and lady, listening to the unidentifiable noises outside, sensing the unseen forces lurking in the next compartment, and fearing a Nazi torpedo and a drowned death at unfathomable depth.
  • liquidchick76
    August 27, 2010
    liquidchick76
    Surprisingly good! When something is labeled a supernatural thriller, one tends to be a bit skeptical, regardless of who wrote it. However, don't judge this flick by its cover- there's a lot going on (and a treat for WWII buffs).
  • puffchunk
    August 5, 2010
    puffchunk
    Entertaining enough, although I expected a bit more from a write of Daron Arnofsky. I must admit, I haven't seen a haunted submarine movie before. The cast was great, all B-movie actors (or at least minor character actors). I half expected to see Ron Pearlman in navy stripes.

View All Below Reviews

Critic Reviews

Eleanor Ringel Gillespie
November 4, 2002
Eleanor Ringel Gillespie, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The film has enough spooky momentum and good actors to keep it going.

Desson Thomson
October 18, 2002
Desson Thomson, Washington Post

An enjoyable, if occasionally flawed, experiment. Full Review

Stephen Hunter
October 18, 2002
Stephen Hunter, Washington Post

It's not original enough.

Edward Guthmann
October 18, 2002
Edward Guthmann, San Francisco Chronicle

Twohy's overwrought, comic-book theatrics work against him, as does the hokey script. Full Review

Eric Harrison
October 18, 2002
Eric Harrison, Houston Chronicle

The reason Below gets beneath your skin is that the scriptwriters know what most current horror filmmakers never learned: Fear is an emotion, not a visceral response. Full Review

Roger Ebert
October 18, 2002
Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times

Below has ambitions to be better than average, but doesn't pull itself together and insist on realizing them. Full Review

Janice Page
October 18, 2002
Janice Page, Boston Globe

With more character development this might have been an eerie thriller; with better payoffs, it could have been a thinking man's monster movie. Full Review

Bill Muller
October 18, 2002
Bill Muller, Arizona Republic

...begins with promise, but runs aground after being snared in its own tangled plot.

Gary Dowell
October 17, 2002
Gary Dowell, Dallas Morning News

Becomes swamped early on and spends the rest of its running time dragging itself to Davy Jones' Locker, and us along with it. Full Review

Roger Moore
October 17, 2002
Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel

This is an exercise in chilling style, and Twohy films the sub, inside and out, with an eye on preserving a sense of mystery.

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