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‘Deep Blue Sea’ is Still as Entertaining Today as It Ever Was [Retrospective]

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An apex predator of the sea, Hollywood and audiences have had an enduring love affair with sharks. It was Steven Spielberg’s seminal Jaws that simultaneously birthed the summer blockbuster in 1975 and made people afraid to go into the water. Save for a few sequels and low budget copycats, though, the limited sub-genre of shark horror was a vast wasteland for decades. Until director Renny Harlin unleashed big budget action horror spectacle Deep Blue Sea in the summer of 1999, that is. A special effects extravaganza that delivers nonstop action sequences and unexpected, gnarly deaths, Deep Blue Sea holds a special place in the canon of shark horror.

Written by Duncan Kennedy, Donna Powers, and Wayne Powers, Deep Blue Sea shares more in common with Alien than it does Jaws. Of course, this shark film pays its respects to its godfather; Thomas Jane’s action hero Carter Blake pries a license plate from the mouth of a tiger shark in an early scene, a direct nod to the license plate found in the belly of a dead tiger shark in Jaws. But the entire setup of the film bears a stronger resemblance to Ridley Scott’s classic 1979 space horror. The lines between sea and space are blurred, with the skeleton crew of the underwater research facility Aquatica trapped inside as they’re hunted by intelligent monsters. Instead of a Xenomorph, though, it’s a trio of scientifically enhanced Mako sharks.

Samuel L. Jackson plays Russell Franklin, the equivalent to Nostromo captain Dallas (Tom Skerritt). Franklin is the level-headed straight man, a corporate exec sent to investigate the facility after a shark escapes and attacks a party boat. Franklin has endured harrowing, extreme situations in his past, and has the chops to rally this motley crew of blue-collar workers and scientists together to survive. Except, he’s taken out early and in a shocking way. Smack in the middle of a rousing battle cry. Harlin effectively keeps his audience on their toes, each death unexpected and in defiance of archetypal expectations. Not all of them go by shark, either. Shark wrangler Blake steps up to the plate as capable hero, Deep Blue Sea’s version of Ellen Ripley, but that wasn’t exactly the original intent.

Of all the deaths in the film (Stellan Skarsgard’s Jim Whitlock suffers a horrifically prolonged one), the only death that feels out of place is that of Susan (Saffron Burrows). She fights for her research and her life the entire film, only to give up and allow herself to become shark food in the finale. It turns out that wasn’t the original ending for Susan; she was supposed to be the Ellen Ripley of the story. In the original ending, Susan was the one to harpoon and kill the final shark. A test screening one month prior to the film’s release changed that. The test audience hated Susan. She was the one who violated ethics and masterminded the sharks’ creation, after all. Susan was seen as the film’s villain, not the hero. Last minute reshoots meant Susan died and Aquatica cook Preacher (LL Cool J) got to play hero with Carter. It was ultimately the right call. Though Susan’s experiments came from a place of good, she wasn’t given much of a redemption arc to earn her heroine title. Not even Carter forgives her until the moment she concedes they should kill the final shark, and by then it’s too late. Considering Carter displayed common sense from the outset, he filled the hero role better anyhow.

If there’s one thing Renny Harlin does well, it’s craft thrilling action with big budget flair. As such, Deep Blue Sea isn’t exactly high-brow, but boy does it entertain. There’s a gleeful sense of fun, as Harlin speeds from exhilarating action sequence to exhilarating action sequence. It’s a reminder that movies don’t always have to have profound depth or a statement to make to solidify their ranks as worthwhile cinema; just pure summer fun will sometimes do.

Deep Blue Sea was the first film Stephen King saw in theaters after nearly dying from a vehicular accident and he enjoyed every second of it. So did critic Roger Ebert. The point being is that there’s a reason Deep Blue Sea was profitable during its theatrical run, and why it still has a solid fanbase today. Harlin dared to bring the horror genre back to the high-budget ranks of films like Jaws, a rarity when horror has increasingly become relegated to low budget profit machines. Jaws may be the granddaddy of all shark horror films, but Deep Blue Sea proved action-horror, great special effects, and a strong grasp of suspense can be just as memorable.

Horror journalist, RT Top Critic, and Critics Choice Association member. Co-Host of the Bloody Disgusting Podcast. Has appeared on PBS series' Monstrum, served on the SXSW Midnighter shorts jury, and moderated horror panels for WonderCon and SeriesFest.

Editorials

‘Leprechaun Returns’ – The Charm of the Franchise’s Legacy Sequel

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leprechaun returns

The erratic Leprechaun franchise is not known for sticking with a single concept for too long. The namesake (originally played by Warwick Davis) has gone to L.A., Las Vegas, space, and the ‘hood (not once but twice). And after an eleven-year holiday since the Davis era ended, the character received a drastic makeover in a now-unmentionable reboot. The critical failure of said film would have implied it was time to pack away the green top hat and shillelagh, and say goodbye to the nefarious imp. Instead, the Leprechaun series tried its luck again.

The general consensus for the Leprechaun films was never positive, and the darker yet blander Leprechaun: Origins certainly did not sway opinions. Just because the 2014 installment took itself seriously did not mean viewers would. After all, creator Mark Jones conceived a gruesome horror-comedy back in the early nineties, and that format is what was expected of any future ventures. So as horror legacy sequels (“legacyquels”) became more common in the 2010s, Leprechaun Returns followed suit while also going back to what made the ‘93 film work. This eighth entry echoed Halloween (2018) by ignoring all the previous sequels as well as being a direct continuation of the original. Even ardent fans can surely understand the decision to wipe the slate clean, so to speak.

Leprechaun Returns “continued the [franchise’s] trend of not being consistent by deciding to be consistent.” The retconning of Steven Kostanski and Suzanne Keilly’s film was met with little to no pushback from the fandom, who had already become accustomed to seeing something new and different with every chapter. Only now the “new and different” was familiar. With the severe route of Origins a mere speck in the rearview mirror, director Kotanski implemented a “back to basics” approach that garnered better reception than Zach Lipovsky’s own undertaking. The one-two punch of preposterous humor and grisly horror was in full force again.

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Pictured: Linden Porco as The Leprechaun in Leprechaun Returns.

With Warwick Davis sitting this film out — his own choice — there was the foremost challenge of finding his replacement. Returns found Davis’ successor in Linden Porco, who admirably filled those blood-stained, buckled shoes. And what would a legacy sequel be without a returning character? Jennifer Aniston obviously did not reprise her final girl role of Tory Redding. So, the film did the next best thing and fetched another of Lubdan’s past victims: Ozzie, the likable oaf played by Mark Holton. Returns also created an extension of Tory’s character by giving her a teenage daughter, Lila (Taylor Spreitler).

It has been twenty-five years since the events of the ‘93 film. The incident is unknown to all but its survivors. Interested in her late mother’s history there in Devil’s Lake, North Dakota, Lila transferred to the local university and pledged a sorority — really the only one on campus — whose few members now reside in Tory Redding’s old home. The farmhouse-turned-sorority-house is still a work in progress; Lila’s fellow Alpha Epsilon sisters were in the midst of renovating the place when a ghost of the past found its way into the present.

The Psycho Goreman and The Void director’s penchant for visceral special effects is noted early on as the Leprechaun tears not only into the modern age, but also through poor Ozzie’s abdomen. The portal from 1993 to 2018 is soaked with blood and guts as the Leprechaun forces his way into the story. Davis’ iconic depiction of the wee antagonist is missed, however, Linden Porco is not simply keeping the seat warm in case his predecessor ever resumes the part. His enthusiastic performance is accentuated by a rotten-looking mug that adds to his innate menace.

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Pictured: Taylor Spreitler, Pepi Sonuga, and Sai Bennett as Lila, Katie and Rose in Leprechaun Returns.

The obligatory fodder is mostly young this time around. Apart from one luckless postman and Ozzie — the premature passing of the latter character removed the chance of caring about anyone in the film — the Leprechaun’s potential prey are all college aged. Lila is this story’s token trauma kid with caregiver baggage; her mother thought “monsters were always trying to get her.” Lila’s habit of mentioning Tory’s mental health problem does not make a good first impression with the resident mean girl and apparent alcoholic of the sorority, Meredith (Emily Reid). Then there are the nicer but no less cursorily written of the Alpha Epsilon gals: eco-conscious and ex-obsessive Katie (Pepi Sonuga), and uptight overachiever Rose (Sai Bennett). Rounding out the main cast are a pair of destined-to-die bros (Oliver Llewellyn Jenkins, Ben McGregor). Lila and her peers range from disposable to plain irritating, so rooting for any one of them is next to impossible. Even so, their overstated personalities make their inevitable fates more satisfying.

Where Returns excels is its death sequences. Unlike Jones’ film, this one is not afraid of killing off members of the main cast. Lila, admittedly, wears too much plot armor, yet with her mother’s spirit looming over her and the whole story — comedian Heather McDonald put her bang-on Aniston impersonation to good use as well as provided a surprisingly emotional moment in the film — her immunity can be overlooked. Still, the other characters’ brutal demises make up for Lila’s imperviousness. The Leprechaun’s killer set-pieces also happen to demonstrate the time period, seeing as he uses solar panels and a drone in several supporting characters’ executions. A premortem selfie and the antagonist’s snarky mention of global warming additionally add to this film’s particular timestamp.

Critics were quick to say Leprechaun Returns did not break new ground. Sure, there is no one jetting off to space, or the wacky notion of Lubdan becoming a record producer. This reset, however, is still quite charming and entertaining despite its lack of risk-taking. And with yet another reboot in the works, who knows where the most wicked Leprechaun ever to exist will end up next.


Horror contemplates in great detail how young people handle inordinate situations and all of life’s unexpected challenges. While the genre forces characters of every age to face their fears, it is especially interested in how youths might fare in life-or-death scenarios.

The column Young Blood is dedicated to horror stories for and about teenagers, as well as other young folks on the brink of terror.

Leprechaun Returns movie

Pictured: Linden Porco as The Leprechaun in Leprechaun Returns.

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