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'''Deep Blue Sea''' is a 1999 science fiction horror film that stars Thomas Jane, Samuel L. Jackson, and Saffron Burrows. The film was directed by Renny Harlin and was released in the United States on July 28, 1999.

Contents

Plot

Cast

Trivia

In popular culture

External links

Plot

On a remote top-secret island facility called Aquatica Research Facility, a team of scientists are searching for a cure for Alzheimer's disease. Two of them, Dr. Susan McAllister (Saffron Burrows) and Jim Whitlock (Stellan Skarsgård) violate the code of ethics, and create three genetically engineered mako sharks, intending to increase their brain capacity so that they can harvest the tissue as a cure for Alzheimer's. Unfortunately, the increased brain capacity also makes the sharks smarter, faster, and more aggressive as well as growing to the size of giant great white sharks. Aquatica's financial backers are skeptical and nervous about the tests and send a corporate executive, Russell Franklin (Samuel L. Jackson), to visit the facility.

In order to prove that the research is worth it, the team manages to remove brain tissue from the largest shark. However, Jim Whitlock is injured. Paramedics are sent for, while Dr McAllister, Dr Janice Higgins (Jacqueline McKenzie) and Russell Franklin use the elevator to get Whitlock to the helicopter.
The helicopter arrives, and Whitlock is hauled up, before being snatched again by the sharks and pulled under. Through the sharks' strength, the helicopter is pulled over to the observation tower and explodes. The explosion kills another one of the team members, Brenda Kerns (Aida Turturro). Back in the lab, Russell Franklin observes on of the sharks heading for the main window of the lab with Whitlock in its mouth. They crash into the window, and the glass gradually breaks. Water fills the lab, and the scientists escape into another room, thinking of a way to get to the surface.
Meanwhile, in the kitchen, which is now partly submerged, one of the sharks has entered and attacks the cook Preacher (LL Cool J). Preacher tries to climb a shelf, but it collapses. His pet bird Bird tries to escape the shark, but is eaten. Preacher is trapped in the oven, and the shark has turned on the gas. Preacher manages to escape and, before leaving the kitchen, he lights a lighter, throws it and blows up the first shark.
Back in the other room, the scientists all argue about how to get to the surface. Russell Franklin silences them and discusses his own idea. Unexpectedly, the second shark leaps out from a pool behind him, and pulls Franklin down. The two remaining sharks then bite Franklin in two. The remaining scientists make way to the elevator shaft and climb up, where the bottom is flooding and the second shark is circling. The ladder that the scientists are climbing falls, and Dr Higgins falls into the water and does not reappear for a while. When she does, she is in the sharks mouth, who is biting into her pelvis. Blake (Thomas Jane) tries to pull her out, but fails, and the shark pulls her back in and devours her. Preacher appears at a landing and pulls the three remaining scientists up.
Blake and Tom Scoggins (Michael Rapaport) volunteer to go down into the water and shut off the pool. Whilst in the water looking for the controls, Blake unexpectedly encounters the dead body of Dr Whitlock. Scoggins finds the controls and manages to shut off the pool, before one of the sharks bites into him, pushes him into the electrical controls, and rips him in half.
McAllister goes to the elevator shaft and pulls down an electrical powerline. The second shark appears out of the flooded shaft, where McAllister throws the power line into its mouth, electrocuting it.
Only Preacher, McAllister and Blake are left alive. They make the startling discovery that the sharks haven't just been trying to kill them, but were actually leading them to flooding the facility (sinking it and the titanium fences surrounding it) so they could escape into the open sea. The three swim to the surface, where Preacher is attacked by the third shark. After being pulled a long way, Preacher stabs the shark through the eye and is released. He swims back to the platform, where he is cared for by Dr McAllister. Blake tries to shoot and kill the third shark, but it is too far away. McAllister decides to sacrifice herself, seeing it as her responsibility. She cuts her hand, jumps in and is eaten. Blake, has jumped in the water in a vain attempt to rescue McAllister, he is attacked by the shark, however he dodges and grabs it's dorsal fin. At this time Preacher, struggling against his wounds, rigs a crossbow with explosives at the tip that will detonate when applied to an electrical current. He fires the crossbow at the shark, and hitting Blake as well. When the shark gets, to the open ocean Blake is pulled free, and Preacher places the other end of the wire to a car sized battery, destroying the shark. At the end of the film, they are both resting, when they see a boat with the other staff of the lab heading towards them.

Cast

★ Thomas Jane — Carter Blake

★ Saffron Burrows — Dr. Susan McCallister

★ LL Cool J — Sherman 'Preacher' Dudley

★ Michael Rapaport — Tom Scoggins

★ Stellan Skarsgård — Jim Whitlock

★ Samuel L. Jackson — Russell Franklin

★ Jacqueline McKenzie — Janice Higgins

★ Aida Turturro — Brenda Kerns

Trivia

★ ''Deep Blue Sea'' was filmed on the set that James Cameron built for ''Titanic''.

★ The license plate on the tiger shark's mouth is the same number as the one found in the stomach of the tiger shark in ''Jaws''.

★ In the film's original cut, McCallister lived, but test audiences made it clear how much they disliked the character (going so far as to shout "Die Bitch!" at the screen) as her actions had caused all that had gone wrong. Thus, the decision was made to reshoot the ending so her character died.

★ Samuel L. Jackson references the film in his DVD commentary on Snakes On a Plane. After giving a noble speech about films and the movie-making business, he jokes by saying: "The last time I made a speech like this, a shark jumped up out of the water and killed my ass!"

In popular culture

★ In an episode of ''3rd Rock from the Sun'', a poster for a parody movie called "Shallow Green Ocean" appears in the background of a scene.

★ Dave Chappelle references Samuel L. Jackson's role in the film ''Deep Blue Sea'' on his Comedy Central program, ''Chappelle's Show''. Dressed as the Samuel Adams Beer mascot, Chappelle yells at a restaurant patron, asking if he has "seen his movies". ''(Chappelle yells)'' ''Deep Blue Sea''? They ate me! A fucking shark ate me!"

★ In the internet parody '', there is a scene where the Juggernaut is underwater, sees a shark, and punches it while saying "That's for eating Samuel L. Jackson!"

★ Talk show host Conan O'Brien has many times jokingly said that ''Deep Blue Sea'' is his favorite movie of all time.

★ During a press panel Q&A at Comic-Con for his role in the film ''Snakes on a Plane'', Samuel L. Jackson was asked which he considered more deadly, snakes or sharks. His alleged response was "Sharks of course. I beat the snakes, sharks ate my ass."

★ A running gag in '' featured Samuel L. Jackson being eaten by a shark without warning, much like in the film.

★ During a Season 31 episode of ''Saturday Night Live'', Seth Meyers does a commentary on Weekend Update about Global Warming and 'Tornado-caines' (a new super cyclone/tornado that has been running rampant throughout the United States) which he references as being 'much like the sharks in the movie ''Deep Blue Sea'' as they have become smarter, learned and adapted.

External links

★ Official site

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