Review: Into the Blue 2: The Reef

Diver duo Chris Carmack and Laura Vandervoort eke out an OK living taking out tourists on diving excursions off the coast of Hawaii, whilst dreaming about finding sunken treasure and quitting to live a rich couple’s life. Enter mysterious British couple David Anders and Marsha Thomason, who say they want to search for lost treasure as well, and need our diving lovebirds to take them out. But we soon learn that what they’re really looking for is two containers. Containers that must hold something awfully important, because if they don’t find those containers, it means grave danger for Anders and Thomason from some very bad people. Carmack and Vandervoort don’t want any trouble, but the promise of 500,000 clams (and the fact that Anders and Thomason have already name-dropped them to the baddies) has them coming around to their way of thinking, and away we go. Amanda Kimmel and the aptly named Parvati Shallow appear as bimbo beach volleyball girls for a scene or two.

If you enjoyed the 2005 original, as I did, then this 2009 direct-to-DVD sequel from director Stephen Herek (the underrated Disney version of “The Three Musketeers” and “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure”) shouldn’t disappoint you too much. No, it’s not as enjoyable as the first one, and in fact it suffers even more so from at least one of the same problems as that film. Like before, the villains are the main problem here. Anders and Thomason just aren’t memorable or very menacing. Having said that, the first film had too many villains, so this one’s a step-up in that regard. The film actually features (random) nudity this time, well a little. And that’s a huge step-up from the original. Carmack and especially Vandervoort are quite acceptable leads, but they’re not as likeable as Walker and (especially) Alba were. Despite not being great actors (Walker was an awful actor, for instance), those two were a good fit with the attractive if formulaic b-material, and had more presence than these two. All four of this film’s leads, by the way, have more TV experience than film experience, and indeed, I find Carmack much more effective on the small screen. I guess that also ties into the Reality TV cameos, too. I also felt that the film took a turn too sharp towards the improbable towards the climax (right around the time a certain someone ends up in hospital). It’s still attractive, watchable stuff for those with low-expectations. It’s all very easy to take, even if you don’t remember a damn thing about it afterwards. Hell, it’s not even all that different from the first film, really, it’s just not as fresh. I could’ve done without the gratuitous cameos by reality TV whores Shallow, Kimmel (two of the more objectionable contestants in “Survivor” history, IMHO) and Audrina Patridge (perhaps the most vacuous of all the bimbos from “The Hills”).

I have to say that the very capable Herek has done a lot better than this before (and probably worse), and it’s at its best when in or around the water. Basically, if you liked watching “Baywatch” in its heyday, this offers somewhat similar stimuli. It’s attractive, if empty-headed stuff. The screenplay by Mitchell Kapner isn’t bad, but isn’t anything terrible new or exciting, much like the film.

Rating: C+