‘You are what it eats’
Amphibious is a 2010 Dutch Indonesian monster horror film directed by Brian Yuzna (Society; Return of the Living Dead III; Necronomicon; The Dentist and sequel) from a screenplay co-written by Yuzna, John Penney, Somtow Sucharitkul and San Fu Maltha. Also known as Amphibious 3D and Amphibious Creature of the Deep
The movie stars Francis Magee, Janna Fassaert and Michael Paré.
Plot:
Marine biologist, Skylar Shane (Fassaert), hires an ex-pat charter boat captain, Jack Bowman (Paré), to help her find prehistoric life form samples in the North Sumatran Sea. During the expedition, they run into some of Jack’s ‘friends’, a gang of smugglers headquartered on a fishing platform in the middle of the sea.
Tamal, an orphan sold into servitude on the fishing platform by his uncle, a ‘Dukun’ [sorcerer and master of black magic] shaman, begs Skylar to take him away. She empathizes with the boy, who reminds her of her lost daughter, Rebecca, and is determined to help him, not knowing what lurks beneath the dark water, waiting to surface.
Once Tamal arrives on the scene, mysterious things begin to happen, until one by one the smugglers are killed by a terrifying creature from the deep. In the middle of an eerie, violent storm, the animus inside Tamal grows stronger, calling for the ancient creature of his nightmares. Now Skylar and Jack must battle the terror, as it is now about to resurface…
Reviews:
“Even its best moments (the CG effects aren’t terrible) have a distinct layer of familiarity, and the movie lacks the wit / energy to rectify its laundry list of technical problems. As indicated on the poster for Amphibious, the flick was slapped together in a hurry in the hopes of riding a little of the Piranha 3DD press. Nothing works.” FEAR.net
“Though not without technical merit Amphibious is a film that suggests Yuzna may be better suited to his frequent role as producer rather than director. The sense of story is muddy and the handling of actors poor and without these you just aren’t left with much of a movie. Some great moments, yes. A compelling overall film, not so much.” Twitch Film
“All in all, some cool effects, with terrible acting, nice cinematography, and a cheesy story, make this a film to be watched with friends and beer. It will find an audience in college dorms, bachelor pads, and at frat parties. This is sub-par in many ways, but most anyone who chooses to watch it, will know what they are getting into, and can ultimately have a fun time.” Horror Newt
Trailer:
