‘The Meg’ is Fun
The Meg | Credit: Warner Bros.
When a group of scientists descends to the bottom of the ocean, they encounter a predator they weren’t ready for: the Megalodon (aka the Meg).
I had a ton of fun watching The Meg. This film follows all of the normal beats that you’d expect it to, and it does so convincingly. The equation of a giant predator chasing a group of people is thrilling. It’s a formula that just works, and I feel like this film really capitalizes on it.
Jason Statham plays the film’s hero, Jonas, an elite deep-sea diver with a troubled past who has to swoop in and save the day when things go badly for his former team. It seems like this part was written for Statham because it’s the perfect blend of action hero, no-nonsense guy with a good heart, and a man haunted by his past. He’s able to bring his natural charm, charisma, and wit while also doing crazy stunts like battling a shark. It’s a great combination.
Like every effective monster movie, The Meg is constantly setting up the stakes and building tension. Toward the beginning of the film, we go deep into the ocean with the team of researchers. There’s this moment where we can see in the trench, and it’s gorgeous and terrifying all at once. The Meg does a good job of highlighting the allure, mystery, and horror of the ocean.
As the movie progresses, we see more and more of what this giant animal can accomplish. We see it attacking an underwater research station, a giant boat, and other also giant aquatic creatures. So, in the third act, when Meg is approaching a crowded beach, we understand the stakes. It’s not just that Meg is a shark, but it’s a more deadly creature than we’ve ever seen. And it’s headed right toward people!
The film spends quite a bit of time establishing what the beachgoers are doing, which I think is very effective. We see people in bright innertubes as Meg lurks deep underwater below them. People are laughing and joking, enjoying their day, until the shark is spotted. As soon as people begin making their way to the beach, Meg begins to swim toward them — which is pretty terrifying to watch.
Of course, our heroes have a plan and swoop in to save the day, which is an utterly bonkers series of events. Thankfully, Jason Statham is on the case.
The Meg | Credit: Warner Bros.
Despite the fact that this is a monster movie, I do appreciate the film’s attempt and making larger points about the world around us and the systems we operate in.
Morris (Rainn Wilson) is a billionaire who is financing the research station that opened up this giant can of sharks. He is obnoxious, as you would expect any ultra-capitalist in a movie to be. In one scene, after suffering a tremendous loss both in human lives and capital, Morris is unconcerned about anything other than his investment. He’s the literal worst.
After the lead scientist, Zhang (Winston Chao), advocates that they proceed slowly and methodically, Morris says the opposite. He doesn’t care about their expert opinions, or their emotional state after losing a teammate. He instead instructs them to do the opposite — they need to move immediately so he doesn’t lose more money.
He really effectively portrays the “move fast and break things” mentality that we see from so many in the tech industry. Morris is unconcerned about the consequences of their actions, he’s just focused on the immediate loss of capital. How many influential and powerful people does that remind you of?
There’s also a pretty clear “eat the rich” theme running throughout The Meg. Is it on the nose? Yes. Is it still awesome? Also yes.
The Meg | Credit: Warner Bros.
Another element of The Meg that I really appreciated was the female characters. And it’s not just one capable woman but multiple are involved in this film. Can we take a moment to celebrate strong, capable women in action movies?
First, there’s Suyin (Bingbing Li), who is an accomplished scientist and an expert in her field. At one point, she is going to do something dangerous, and Jonas offers to do it instead. It’s nice for him to offer, but instead of acquiescing, she says, “Let me do what I do best.”
Yes, girl!
Next, there’s Jaxx (Ruby Rose), an incredible engineer, hacker, and more. She also doesn’t take any foolishness from anyone around her. Throughout the film, Jonas questions some of her decisions or her designs, and she always has a response for him. It’s clear that the two of them have a mutual respect that is fun to watch.
And finally, we meet Lori (Jessica McNamee), who happens to be Jonas’ wife, but she’s also so much more. She’s an accomplished submarine pilot and knows how to take charge in difficult situations. When her sub crashes early in the film, she doesn’t panic but works collaboratively with her team to assess and work on a way out of the situation. Though we don’t spend a ton of time with her, the contributions she does make are welcome.
Bingbing Li and Jason Statham in The Meg | Credit: Warner Bros.
The Meg isn’t the greatest monster movie of all time, but it’s highly effective. It’s entertaining and is a ton of fun watching these people try to escape this unbelievably giant shark.
I watched this in preparation for the second film, but I’ve heard that The Meg 2 is a pretty terrible movie, so I don’t think I’m going to go see it in theaters. I’ll just have to wait until it comes to streaming to see the (likely terrible) sequel to this pretty entertaining shark movie.
If you’ve seen The Meg 2 and I’m missing out, please let me know!