The Shallows (2016)

Why is this called The Shallows?  Because guess what bitches?  You don't only have to fear sharks in deep water, turns out they can be in shallow water too.  So let's all head out to the beach, I'm sure it will be fine.

So, Nancy (Blake Lively), in the first of what I'm sure will be many bad decisions, heads to a secret, nameless beach by herself, leaving her hungover friend back at the hotel.  She gets a ride there from some random dude and then seems to think she's going to get an Uber back?  From a secluded beach?  I'm already annoyed.  Extra points for the cool surfing scenes though.  When her newfound surfing buddies call it a day, she stupidly stays out on the water by herself, even though she's now totally alone with no way of getting back.

So, as the previews and summary explain (so no spoilers), Nancy is stuck on a rock, fairly close to shore, with a shark stalking her and no rescue in sight.  It's hot, it's cold, there's wounds, there's fire coral, there's an injured seagull, and there is one badass shark.

Honestly, I was preparing myself to fully hate on this movie because of her dumb initial decisions, but this movie was pretty damn cool.  The shark was really realistic and the underwater scenes were harrowing.  And don't get me started on her leg wound, yikes.  And the swimming in the jellyfish...yoooo.  So I guess the lesson here is, don't judge an entire movie by it's heroine's behavior at the beginning.

I'm actually surprised at how well Blake Lively carried this entire movie on her own -- apparently she was inspired by her husband Ryan Reynold's performance in Buried, which was an awesome film also!