A flock of birds fly into the jet engine of a commercial airliner, causing it to crash into the ocean, with only a few survivors tasked with escaping the sinking plane while enduring oxygen depletion and nasty sharks. No way up. But does this low-budget film rise above its shopworn monster trope, or does it sink under the weight of its low budget?
First of all, this movie is obviously not on the level of another popular survival movie, The Snow Societybut surprisingly it is not Sharknado either. You can tell a lot of good direction went into making it and its stars are up for the task. The histrionics are kept to a minimum and unfortunately the same can be said for the suspense. That doesn’t mean that No way up is a soft noodle, there’s plenty here to keep you watching until the end, even if the last two minutes are offensive to your suspension of disbelief.
Let’s start with the good. No way up it has a lot of good acting, especially from its lead SOphie McIntosh who plays Ava, the daughter of a wealthy governor with a heart of gold. Inside, she struggles with the memory of her mother’s drowning and is never far from her overprotective elderly bodyguard, Brandon, played with nanny diligence by Colm Meaney. McIntosh doesn’t reduce herself to B-movie size, she’s fully engaged and gives a strong performance even if the material is ironed out.
Another notable is Grace Nettle playing 12-year-old Rosa who travels with her grandparents Hank (James Carroll Jordan) and Mardy (Phyllis Logan). Nettle does not reduce his character to delicate interpolation. She’s scared, yes, but she also has some pretty good input and advice on surviving the situation.
Will Attenborough He plays the unfiltered Kyle, which I imagine was there for comic relief, but the young actor never successfully tempers his villainy with nuance, so he just comes off as an archetypal badass cut in to round out the diverse ensemble.
Completing the cast is Manuel Pacific, who plays Danilo, the stewardess who is the target of Kyle’s homophobic aggressions. The whole interaction feels a bit over the top, but then again Attenborough hasn’t developed his character well enough to warrant any.
Continuing with what is good about the film are the special effects. The plane crash scene, as they always are, is terrifying and realistic. Director Claudio Fäh spared no expense in this department. You’ve seen it all before, but here, since you know they’re crashing in the Pacific, it’s more tense and when the plane hits the water, you’ll wonder how they did it.
As for the sharks, they are equally impressive. It’s hard to tell if they used the live ones. There are no hints of CGI, no uncanny valley to speak of, and the fish are genuinely menacing, although they don’t get the screen time you might expect.
Now with the bad ones. No way up it’s a great idea on paper, but the reality is that such a thing could not happen in real life, especially when a jumbo jet crashes into the Pacific Ocean at such a high speed. And even though the director successfully made it seem like it could happen, there are so many factors that just don’t make sense when you think about it. Underwater air pressure is the first thing that comes to mind.
It also lacks a cinematic polish. It has that straight-to-video feel to it, but the effects are so good that you can’t help but feel that the cinematography, especially inside the plane, should have been slightly upped. But I’m pedantic No way from the top it’s a good time.
The ending doesn’t live up to the film’s potential and you’ll question the limits of the human respiratory system, but then again, that’s a problem.
Overall, No way up it’s a great way to spend an evening watching a survival horror movie with the family. There are some gory visuals, but nothing bad, and the shark scenes can be a little intense. It is rated R on the lower level.
No way up It may not be the “next big shark” movie, but it’s a thrilling drama that rises above the other buddy so easily thrown into Hollywood waters thanks to the dedication of its stars and believable special effects.
No way from the top is now available to rent on digital platforms.
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