Everyday Parisians might wonder things like "What if there were a shark in the Seine?" as a whimsical hypothetical. Providing a dramatic answer to this is Netflix's fresh and captivating thriller "Under Paris". Steering away from cliches, director Xavier Gens pulls off a high-concept premise that's intriguing and not overly campy.
The echo of environmental damage underscores the plot with the antagonist, the apex-predator Lilith, driven into France’s Seine River due to pollution in her original saltwater habitat. The story takes off with a journey to the Pacific Garbage Patch where researchers headed by Sophia (Bérénice Bejo) encounter a mako shark frenzy, ending in her husband's tragic death.
The film, set three years after the incident, spotlights Sophia juggling between the police and an activist group who are grappling with the fact that a shark inhabits the Seine. The situation is further complicated with the upcoming triathlon scheduled to take place in the river, which the city authorities are hesitant to postpone due to safety concerns. Sophia convincingly expresses disbelief each time she's faced with another seeming impossibility.
“Under Paris”, originally titled “Sous la Seine”, takes audience expectations with a predictable outcome, making it a smart blockbuster that would have been best viewed on the big screen. Even the lack of iconic quotable dialogue does not impede the impressive and immersive visuals that match the material.
Comparable to Jaws in terms of its often imitated, never replicated status, "Under Paris" makes a strong claim for itself in the list of truly great shark movies. The movie, now streaming on Netflix, is a must watch, assured more in its plotting than it needing to appeal as a guilty pleasure.
