‘Black Water’ (2007) Our Friday Night Movie Pick

This week’s recommendation is quite the creature feature. If you like a lot of sharp teeth and the terror that only comes from being stalked by a ferocious predator then this is the movie for you.

Black Water follows three tourists who have decided to take a boat ride down a crocodile infested river and adjoining swap in Northern Australia. When their boat capsizes and it becomes obvious that they are being stalked by a very hungry crocodile, Grace (Diana Glenn), her boyfriend Adam (Andy Rodoreda) and her little sister Lee (Maeve Dermody) have to work together to try and make it out of the swamp alive.

Directors David Nerlich and Andrew Traucki are no strangers to the dangerous predator genre, having also directed Open Water, which tells a similar story about a group of people being stalked by a shark. Black Water was their first though, and it really portrays their raw talent. The budget is really minimal and they make the most of the beautiful and dangerous landscape of Australia and the innate fear of the lurking predator. You very rarely see the crocodile, it’s more about trick camera movements and the tension of not knowing when and where it will finally show up, but all of these aspects create a truly terrifying atmosphere that will have you on the edge of your seat throughout.

I also can’t really say enough about the cast. Sometimes indie movies have some of the most talented actors. Diana Glenn and Maeve Dermody are wonderful as sisters and are so relatable and endearing.  These kinds of movies only work when we are truly rooting for the main characters.

We take so many things for granted as we go about out lives with our online shopping and drive-thrus and instant coffee. Everything is so easy for us, and safe. We rarely, if ever, have to truly fight for our survival. Society has made us cocky and it’s truly terrifying to see a situation where all of that is turned on it’s head and we see characters fighting for their lives against perfectly evolved killing machines. It’s so humbling, and this movie makes these creatures seem just as beautiful and wondrous as they are terrifying.

At 89 minutes, this movie is the perfect length to pull you in and really amp up the tension and keep you guessing throughout. Most creature movies follow a very specific formula, and although this does carry some of those elements, it really stands on its own, with its intelligent characters, depiction of the crocodile and surprising plot points.

This really isn’t one you want to miss; it’s a truly terrifying worst-case scenario, vacation gone wrong done so so right. Give it a watch tonight.