The execution, however, was nothing short of amazing. You felt like you were sitting alongside the main characters, going through everything they were going through. That no one had seen Blanchard Ryan or Daniel Travis before only added to the effect.
I was also impressed with Graeme Revell's score, and while his score for The Crow was beautiful, seamlessly tying that movie together, this score may replace it as my favourite of his. Time will tell. I'm still trying to digest the experience. See, you'd think that, out on the open water, any music would be out of place, taking the audience out of the moment, but Revell somehow managed to hit that note that actually pulled you in that much further. And he did it at least half a dozen times. Truly amazing.
WARNING: EXPERIENCE-RUINING spoilers follow...
I think the most horrifying aspect of this movie was the sheer humanity of its characters. That brings reality to a movie like no "based on true events" caveat can. From the dialogue leading up to the dive, to stages that the characters went through, to the shots that I mentioned, everything was setting you up for that shot, the following morning, of Susan (Blanchard Ryan) holding Daniel (Daniel Travis), feeling his neck and crying. Up to that shot, you are that couple, and you desperately want those search-and-rescue vehicles you've been shown to find them.
And then it all goes wrong as you watch her let him go. Initially, you're screaming, "No! Help is on the way!" Then, as more and more sharks circle her and eat Daniel, you're thinking, "No; no it isn't." And, finally, she slips under the water, and you're left thinking that yes, you too could take those three gulps of seawater. You too could kill yourself in that moment. You, sitting in that theatre, have come much closer to understanding just how fleeting life is, because, despite your best efforts, you haven't been able to separate their fate from yours.
