Surprisingly not (entirely) an Alien ripoff.
The Upside:
First and foremost, Underwater is a disaster movie, and an effective one. The viewer is plunged right into the action from the beginning and the tension stays high throughout as the crew of the ill fated deep water drill faces peril after peril. Underwater also has some great set design and practical magic that seems to be lost a lot in movies these days. Underwater also has some fairly creative deaths, which are unexpected and imaginative, and Kristen Stewart and TJ Miller give great performances as the leading woman and comedic relief.
The Downside:
Although Underwater is an effective disaster movie, the monsters are lacking. Their design is not very terrifying, and they are revealed fairly early in the film, making the back half of the movie lose the tension it builds so well in the front. Plunging directly into the action also works against it, as the characters are introduced as the action unfolds, without them being established, leaving them all feeling one dimensional, lacking personality (with the exception of TJ Miller) and not giving any real reason to root for their survival. I also must note that although it’s a lot heavier on the disaster aspect of things, the tone and design are WAY too similar to Alien (which if you can imagine is a much MUCH better film).
The Verdict: C
Underwater is a very okay film. Its high tension makes it a stressfully enjoyable watch, even if the monster-movie side of things and characters are lacking.
The High Point: Death by implosion
The Low Point: Being too much of an Alien rip-off
FlickFix 