Below Is A Monster Show With Tricks Up Its Sleeve
Josh Hartnett leads this surprisingly cerebral creature feature.
The beginning of Netflix’s upcoming series Below is jarring to say the least. Not only is there a terrifying monster on the loose, but Josh Hartnett is talking in an inscrutable accent. Eventually, it becomes clear this is a story set in the islands of Eastern Canada, in the fictional town of Snook’s Arm.
Over the course of its six episodes, it comes together like a less comedic version of Widow’s Bay, or maybe a less religious version of Midnight Mass, and then falls apart into a different genre altogether, transforming into something a lot more metaphysical and — perhaps — even a bit surrealist. Regardless of what you expect from this show, it’ll find a way to surprise you. Like the terrors of the deep, this is one that will sneak up on you.
Below follows Calvin Penney (Hartnett), a longtime islander who tries to keep his family safe when his community is ravaged by a Jaws-like beast from below. He joins forces with a local researcher (Mackenzie Davis) and together they solve the mystery of just what really looms in the ice, dragging Calvin back into the past and into his own family history.
Below begins with the Widow’s Bay element of the man trying to keep his small town together, but over time it develops into something more akin to if Anne of Green Gables had a spinoff set in the same universe as Creature From the Black Lagoon. In its last two episodes, there are extended sequences that reminded me of, of all things, The Leftovers.
The cast is also extremely locked in, and Charlie Heaton is so perfectly cast as Calvin’s son that it took me three episodes to even realize who it was. You instantly understand what kind of place Snook’s Arm is, even down to the smallest details — in one scene, I was delighted to see a character wearing a specific sweater pattern that’s been popular lately, and it even had visible mending and patching work. Any show that can get the knitwear right is worth your time.
Something terrifying lies in the glacial waters of Snook’s Arm.
I don’t want to go into too much detail about the actual threat underneath the surface, but rest assured it’s one that will make you more terrified of icebergs than Titanic. As the series devolves into a full-on save-the-world adventure, the creature feels like another character entirely, and you start to relate to it.
There are facets of so many different shows and niches in this series, but it’s coming at a perfect time for all of them. After Stranger Things proved there’s still taste for a creepy alien show and Widow’s Bay made room for the small-town Atlantic horror mystery, this series takes that inspiration and runs with it, showing just really what is possible when you get a little absurd with even the most terrifying story.
