‘Your deepest fear will keep you alive’
The Reef: Stalked is a 2022 horror drama film about four young women on a kayaking trip who must defend themselves from a marauding shark.
Written, co-produced and directed by Andrew Traucki (Black Water: Abyss; The Jungle; The ABCs of Death ‘G is for Gravity’ segment; The Reef; Black Water). Also produced by Jack Christian, Neal Kingston, Heather MacFarlane (line producer) and Michael Robertson.
The soundtrack score was composed by Mark Smythe (The Possessed; Boar; Charlie’s Farm; Daddy’s Little Girl).
The Australian movie stars Teressa Liane (The Spy Who Never Dies; His Killer Fan; The Vampire Diaries TV series), Ann Truong (Hard Target 2), Saskia Archer, Kate Lister (The Final Scream; Curse of the Scarecrow; Mandy the Haunted Doll; Unhinged), Bridget Burt and Tim Ross.
Plot:
After her sister’s murder, Nic, her younger sister and two friends seek solace through a remote Pacific island kayaking adventure. Hours into the trip the women are stalked by a shark and must band together, face their fears and save each other…
Release:
RLJE Films/Shudder acquired the North American rights to The Reef: Stalked. The film will be released theatrically, on Digital, On-Demand (VOD) and will be available for streaming on Shudder on July 29, 2022.
In the UK, The Reef: Stalked is released by Signature Entertainment on Digital from July 29th and on DVD on August 8th. A Blu-ray release follows on September 20th.
Reviews:
“The Reef: Stalked is more thriller than horror and if you class it as a thriller I think it works better, the story is one that does work and you do feel for the characters a little, the cast does a great job showing the fear that you would expect anyone to have when they are being stalked by a great white, the soundtrack from Mark Smythe (Boar) works well and it does have moments when it has those John Williams moments when the shark attacks, which sound great.” 2.5 out of 5, Blazing Minds
“Stalked stages a few suspenseful moments and teases of shark terror that harkens back to the frequent dread of The Reef. But it struggles to keep everything afloat against the heavy weight of a cast unable to sell fear or urgency, and a heavy-handed trauma healing metaphor that comes and goes like the tide.” 2.5 out of 5, Bloody Disgusting
“Without an original bone in its rail-thin body, The Reef: Stalked resorts to stockpiling routine setups stolen from every other shark B-movie that’s followed the same stale formula. During quieter moments, someone looks around with wide eyes while trying to keep frightened panting to a minimum. A hand outstretches for something like a boat oar while music grumbles at a low octave.” 30 out of 100, Culture Crypt
“Some of the most effective scenes occur when the women are simply existing with one another and bonding through a shared sense of loss. The conversations and heavy moments between Nic and Annie feel authentic. The dialogue and the sibling dynamic both work to make their plight that much more believable.” 4.25 out of 5, Dread Central
“Traucki manipulates the suspense competently enough, but this film mostly depends on tedious jump-scares for its effect, and has a few too many scenes where someone looks around in terror at the water with a worried expression. The tense music is hackneyed and consequently about as biting as a minnow nip.” 2 out of 5, The Guardian
“Stunning ocean views mix with moments of chaos and drama as the water churns and blood bubbles up from beneath the waves. The attacks are relatively believable, not hyped-up, gore-filled scenes. It’s one of the more realistic shark movies I’ve seen […] The tension is built up well in the film, writer-director Andrew Traucki takes the time to tell this story.” Horror Fuel
“A lot can usually be forgiven in a shark movie, but when the basics of what makes a shark movie effective aren’t all that refined, it’s a total letdown. The Reef: Stalked isn’t one of the good ones, nor is it a complete wash. Whereas The Reef was more technically accomplished, this one is just… seaworthy enough.” Horror Obsessive
“The Reef: Stalked is another middling mid-budget fin flick that’s tonally confused somewhere between Shark Week and Lifetime. There’s nothing exceptional nor abysmal — Deep Blue Sea 3 and The Requin respectively represent both ends of the recent subgenre spectrum there […] It’s consistently underwhelming and repetitively dull, never finding the true horrors of shark attack flicks.” IGN
“The Reef: Stalked offers nothing we haven’t seen in its many rivals over the past few decades, and its attempts to add a social theme simply come off as clunky and misjudged. Jaws IV: The Revenge is well-mocked for proffering the notion that its animal antagonist holds a personal grudge against the human heroes, a ridiculous idea The Reef: Stalked drifts dangerously close to imitating.” 2.5 out of 5, The Movie Waffler
“While there are better shark movies out there, its engaging characters and startling scares make it an enjoyable piece of aquatic horror. If you’re looking for teeth and blood, this may not be the movie for you, but if you have an appetite to see women banding together to survive, The Reef: Stalked is a nice stretch of ocean to visit.” Nightmarish Conjurings
” …the performances are good, the sense of jeopardy suitably uncomfortable, and the decision-making understandable […] aside from a middle-act slump and the slightly underwhelming finale Stalked is a solid entry into already infested waters.” 3 out of 5, Starburst
“The actual attack scenes are well staged and do keep the shark out of sight as much as possible. A lot of viewers will probably feel let down by the fact there aren’t more of them as well as the relatively low body count and lack of gore. I could have done with more of them myself, but The Reef: Stalked at least delivers a good amount of tension and suspense in between the attacks.” 3 out of 5, Voices from the Balcony
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