Fear Below, a 2025 Australian thriller directed by Matthew Holmes, takes viewers deep into the dark depths of fear, greed, and survival. The movie takes place in Australia in the 1940s and combines historical crime drama with creature horror. This makes it different from other shark thrillers that take place in the present day. The story is about a salvage diving team that is hired by a group of ruthless criminals to get gold out of a river. But when greed sets in, the mission turns deadly when the divers find out they’re not alone in the water—a huge bull shark has made this part of the river its home.
Fear Below’s setting and attention to period detail are what stand out right away. The movie’s recreation of Australia after World War II, with its old-fashioned diving suits and rustic boats, makes the setting feel real and adds to the tension. The underwater filming is creepy and claustrophobic, and the low visibility and muffled sounds make the fear even stronger. Holmes makes a smart choice by using setting and tone to build suspense instead of cheap jump scares.
Fear Below tries to do something new by mixing a crime-heist story with a creature feature. This is both a good and bad thing for the movie. The film’s dual-genre approach gives it more depth than most shark-attack movies. The constant changes in tone between gangster drama and horror, on the other hand, can make things feel uneven. The characters, especially the group of divers, are okay, but they don’t have the emotional depth that would make people really care when the shark attacks.
The cast does a good job in all areas of performance. The cast does a good job of showing how greed leads to desperation and moral decay, even though the script doesn’t always give them a lot of room to breathe. But the shark is the real star. The creature is only shown a few times, which makes it more scary. When the attacks do happen, they are brutal, well-planned, and have a big effect. This is thanks to a mix of practical effects and subtle CGI that make everything feel real.
People who don’t like Fear Below have different opinions. Some people liked its unique idea, striking visuals, and slow-burning tension, while others didn’t like how it didn’t make them feel anything and had a lot of shark action. Still, it’s hard to deny that the movie adds something new to the shark movie genre, which is often the same thing over and over again. Instead of relying only on jump scares or over-the-top effects, it focuses on atmosphere, tension, and character-driven stories.
Fear Below isn’t just another “killer shark” movie; it’s a gritty, visually rich, and sometimes haunting thriller that goes against the flow. People who want constant action or big-budget spectacle might not like it, but for people who like slow-burning, thought-provoking creature horror, it offers a scary and unforgettable journey into fear beneath the surface.