Pretty Good

People are voting emotionally.

It’s sentimental, ridiculously long and only occasionally funny

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

NO SPOILERS IN THIS FIRST PARAGRAPH... This film had a good story, the CGI was pretty good for a B movie and the acting wasn't bad either (mostly). On top of that the horror aspect was done well too. Unfortunately it was so full of clichés and unnecessary plot holes it was just ridiculous - even for a B movie! You should only watch this if you've moved all objects away from you because you WILL want to throw them at the TV!SPOILERS ALL THE WAY FROM HERE... The English woman was incredibly annoying throughout the whole thing. She walks around the boat after being confined to her cabin; gets caught rummaging through the captain's cabin; then tries ordering the crew around and demanding things from the XO and yet nobody seems to do anything about it. And do Americans think all English people speak like the Queen? I mean, really, why does Hollywood always have to give female English characters a silver spoon up their arse? So annoying was she that I was constantly rooting for someone to throw her off the boat or lock her in the torpedo tubes. In fact I think if she hadn't been in it I would have given this 6 stars instead of 3.When she took her mask off in the smoke filled compartment I thought 'Yay! She's going to suffocate now!' Alas, the smoke seemed to have suddenly disappeared and the air was breathable again - quite a thing to happen in an airtight submarine!Apart from that (and if you don't mind that the crew are standing on the deck of a sinking submarine in the middle of a storm yet they aren't having any trouble staying upright) there were only a few other plot holes so if you like ghost films and have exhausted every other option then it's worth a watch.

David Twohy's Below cleverly combines two genres which seem to be made for each other, yet had never met up until this film. The atmospheric ghost thriller goes on an underwater ride with the submarine film for quite the unique and eerie experience. Strange occurrences happen aboard a US army submarine during a routine WWII patrol mission, starting with the rescue of several stranded British castaways from a decimated ship, including Olivia Williams and Dexter Fletcher. The Captain (Bruce Greenwood) attempts to keep his crew calm, but apparently it's bad luck to have a woman onboard and soon uneasiness creeps in amongst them. There's a mystery about their quarters as well, involving the supernatural, and pretty soon crewmembers are seeing, hearing and reporting eerie stuff, which adds to the tension. The crew is rounded out by an eclectic bunch of actors including Nick Chinlund, Holt McCallany, Matthew Davis, Christopher Fairbank, and Zach Galifianakis as a guy named Weird Wally who really lives up to the name. There's some spooky moments, high drama between the cast which they pull off well, and a twist ending that explains the ghostly elements. Underrated stuff.

So, should you give up a couple of hours and watch this film. If you're one of those people that are happy to chat with everyone around you while watching films or laugh at parts that are meant to be touching or scary, then no. (Okay, don't get me started on that.) If not, you'll enjoy this film, you'll enjoy the acting and you'll enjoy the atmosphere and the tension. I think the 6.? score is to be honest down to people who'd rather watch a documentary on WW II. Yes the submarine seems a bit roomy at times but that doesn't spoil the drama for me. As for the plot, without giving anything away, the sin at the heart of the story grows larger and darker. I won't say any more, just that you'll see some good actors here that have popped up and become more famous 10 years after this film.

I tend to agree more with Ebert here rather than with the critics praising this movie. 'Below' is not a horror movie, but an attempt at making a 'claustrophobic' thriller with a 'paranormal' twist. The problem with the film in my opinion is that it aspires to be a horror movie as well, and this is where things go wrong. In trying to do this, the director is uncertain whether to make a 'believable' film or go over the top and turn it into a horror flick, thus resulting in an ineffective mix of the two that doesn't really work.Don't get me wrong, this is not a bad movie, just your 'run of the mill' slightly-below-average Hollywood production.