The Meg (2018)

“Meg versus man isn’t a fight . . . it’s a slaughter.”  1 June 2020

A group of scientists descend to the deepest part of the ocean.  Unfortunately, they run into trouble (in the form of a giant, thought-to-be-extinct megalodon) and are stranded.  A rescue is attempted and is successful.  But on the way back to the surface, our band of interpret heroes / explorers is followed.  What do you think it could be?  

My quick review of The Meg - Big dumb fun (quite a bit of it actually), but little else.  

My main problem is that just about every aspect of The Meg is predictable.  Plot twists, character backstories, romance angles, the fate of Rainn Wilson’s Morris - there are very few surprises.  The most predictable thing, however, is (even though it’s painfully obvious, I feel compelled to say SPOILER WARNING) the second meg.  With at least 45 minutes of runtime left, who didn’t see that coming?  END SPOILER WARNING.

I”m not overly familiar with Bingbing Li, but I want to see more.  She’s a legitimate bright spot in The Meg.  As for Jason Statham, he’s Jason Statham.  You get what you expect.  Rainn Wilson has some good moments (I especially enjoyed the Shark Week bit), but ultimately, he wears out his welcome and I wanted to see his character die.  And could Sophia Cai be anymore cute?  What a little actress!

Special effects were hit or miss.  Some of the meg close-ups were obviously CGI.  However, the scene with the giant squid, for example, looked fantastic to me.  Set design was nice.  The underwater station looked appropriately “cool”.  

5/10