The Reef: Stalked  ★★½ 

IF YOU’RE going to make a shark movie perhaps it’s best to make it in Australia.

The Reef: Stalked is a decent effort that benefits from trying to do something a little differently.

The main character suffers a traumatic event – out of the water – at the start of the film which is then mirrored somewhat by the unexplainable decision of a shark to target her and her friends on a kayaking holiday.

Writer/director Andrew Traucki made the first The Reef movie plus two other crocodile flicks so he knows his way around killer animal threats.

One of the strengths of The Reef: Stalked is the use of silence to build tension and demonstrate how a shark can literally come from any direction at a sudden burst of speed.

The acting is a notch above the usual for a shark movie, the locations are great and character motivations are clear and mostly believable.

Not a bad effort overall.

Watched on Prime