What is summer without a shark movie?
Starring Saskia Archer, Teressa Liane, Kate Lister, and Ann Truong, The Reef: Stalked follows a group of friends kayaking at an Australian island resort as one grieves the death of her sister, Cath (Bridget Burt). The loss doesn’t stop there as the group of friends quickly find themselves relentlessly pursued by a great white shark.
Although this film is directed by Andrew Traucki, who also directed the original (a film based upon the true story of a group of swimmers who were marooned in shark-infested waters off the coast of Australia), seeing the first film is not necessary to enjoy this sequel as The Reef: Stalked tells a new story about new people.
Through powerful female characters coupled with strong performances, Traucki creates a suspenseful tale wrought with meaningful metaphors and helps shine a light on domestic violence issues.
Because Cath was drowned and murdered by her husband, and her sister Nic (Teressa Laine) witnessed the horrific aftermath, Nic is left plagued by PTSD-related flashbacks whenever she is submerged in water.
Despite this, she consistently puts herself in harm’s way to protect her friends whenever the threat of a shark looms. By both overcoming the fear of impending shark attacks and constantly confronting her trauma, Nic radiates powerful feminine energy. Teressa Liane does a fantastic job of portraying this strong character.
Each female character takes turns demonstrating their versions of badassery, with their resumes not limited to spear hunting fish and fishing for a shark. This film exudes girl power through and through. Each actress executed her role gracefully and created a truly realistic picture.
By creating believable and relatable characters, the film felt more realistic, aiding in the delivery of suspense. Though the shark action doesn’t begin until about thirty minutes into the movie, the shark’s presence is ever looming both in the water and in our minds. We know a shark attack is coming, but we don’t know when. By the time it does happen, the suspense doesn’t lighten up as the fates of all the characters hang in the balance.
With a score reminiscent of Jaws, and typical shots of unsuspecting feet dangling in the water, there were plenty of moments where I was left holding my breath. When I finally came up for air, I was disappointed in the number of times that the suspense-building amounted to nothing. Though this film demonstrated that getting out of the water doesn’t make a person safe from a shark attack, the movie misses its mark on being genuinely chilling. On the thriller/horror meter, this film is more of a suspenseful thriller than a scary movie. What would stick to my bones long after viewing, though, was the commentary and presentation of domestic violence.
Andrew Traucki wanted to highlight the dangers and realities of domestic violence and did so in a way that showed the effects of DV more than just the victim. As Nic continuously relives the drowning of Cath in her mind, the pursuant images haunt not only Nic but the viewer as well. Domestic violence is by far the scariest part of the film.
Justifiably so, given that 2021 saw only nine shark attack related fatalities, while the same year saw 112 people lost to domestic violence in Pennsylvania alone.
The film’s dedication to the women finding safety in numbers and leaning on each other during the most harrowing moments stands as a beautiful metaphor for the power of community and friendship when dealing with hard times.
The metaphor lengthens as many shots show nothing happening on the ocean’s surface although the shark is prowling. It’s a fearsome reminder that the ocean can hide much beneath what we can see. This almost on-the-nose metaphor shows that just because everything looks calm from the outside does not mean there is no vicious monster lurking underneath.
Furthermore, given that the women in this film take turns spotting the small signs that a shark is nearby, such as the congregation of birds or a fin just barely grazing the surface, the film demonstrates that it can take many eyes to spot a monster.
Overall, what The Reef: Stalked lacked in action, it made up for in powerful performances and heavy metaphors. On the surface, it may be just a suspenseful shark film, but floating underneath is a powerful display of feminine teamwork and domestic violence awareness.
Check out The Reef: Stalked, releasing July 29th in theaters and on Shudder.
If you or someone you know is currently suffering from domestic violence, call the domestic violence hotline at 800-799-7233 or visit thehotline.org for help, resources, and support.