Succesfully bad

With a story like that, this movie needed to be bad. And it succeeded effortlessly, with an helpless actors, abysmal effects, bad editing and incoherent lighting in every scene. So if you are INTO that sort of thing, you could be sort of entertained. If not, like a said: it really is bad.

A unique and pretty modern fairytale experience

It is an unusual blend of humor, science fiction and an escape movie, all wrapped in an arthouse atmosphere, and somehow it works beautifully. The trademark color tones and style of Del Toro look as gorgeous as ever in this 50s setting.

Arrogant empty shell

How the hell did they get such a big budget to make such bland, generic, lifeless movie? It radiates arrogance. The numerous 'emotional' scenes with cheesy minor piano chords fall flat completely because I didn't know or care who these people are!

Gorgeous to look at, with really decent shark terror as well

This is beautifully shot and was made with much finesse. At times, the imagery of the ocean feels like living paintings. Acting and thrills are also good, making this one of the better sharks movies out there.

The individual parts are not all that, but as a whole it works

It's quite easy to point out several flaws in it, especially the first half with the endless intercom chatter. But the atmosphere is unique, and pointing out the unrealistic scenes somehow seems irrelevant, as these seem like metaphors for the struggle for womanhood in a male world.