Isolation, lurking predators, unpredictable conditions—the deep blue has its own set of perils, which can make survival a daunting challenge. But even the toughest hurdles cast by nature pale in comparison when the evil depths of manmade horrors surface—something that Dead Sea, a survival thriller directed by Phil Volken focuses on. Following a jet-ski accident, two friends find themselves drifting in the open ocean, and when they are rescued eventually, the duo are subjected to a worse fate than what the unfathomable depths might have offered them. Despite having everything well set for a proper isolation thriller, Dead Sea fumbles in its execution, as at the end, it feels like a missed opportunity to not tighten the atmospheric tension. Add to that a very simplistically concocted climax, the movie badly lacks the thrill factor and ends up sinking amidst numerous average flicks of the same genre.
Spoilers Ahead
How Did Kaya and Tessa Get Stranded in the Ocean?
Our teenage protagonist, Kaya Adams, lives with her younger brother, Kit, and father, Russell, near the coastline of the Florida Keys. Like most of the families living there, the Adams family is dependent on the ocean for their livelihood, and Kaya, a champion swimmer, has become well adapted to the life. However, the recent death of her mother has resulted in Russell’s sudden disenchantment from family life, making Kaya the guardian figure for her ailing brother, Kit, and caregiver for the family as well. The story follows Kaya as she meets with her best friend, Tessa, to chill out, and Tessa’s boyfriend, Julian, proposes they venture to the Bahamas to spend the day. Julian invites his best friend, Xander, to go along, as they plan to take two jet skis to reach the islands. Kaya is initially hesitant, as she needs to return soon to take care of her brother, but Tessa reassures her, suggesting she loosen up a little. Kaya eventually agrees to go with them after making a quick video call to Kit to inform him about her recent plan.
Reaching the beautiful shores of the Bahamas, Kaya gradually unwinds as she and Xander get acquainted with each other, and eventually the duo get closer. After frolicking through the day, the four friends head back home when, while showing off, Julian accidentally topples over his jetski after coming across a riptide, and Xander absent-mindedly crashes his jetski into him. A fatally injured Julian drowns to his death along with the wrecked jetskis; Xander gets severely injured, leaving a horrified Tessa and Kaya trying their best to keep him afloat. There is no way for them to call for help either, as they have lost their phones with the jetskis as well. With Tessa being injured as well, the perilous situation of drifting into the open ocean grows more troublesome until Rey, a fisherman, spots the trio and brings them on board his fishing trawler. Having lost all hope of surviving, the unexpected rescue feels like a boon to the friends, only for them to realize later that they have landed in deep water.
What Did Rey and Dr. Hunt Plan To Do With The Trio?
As Xander clings to his life, Rey promises to call for help, and after speaking with Kaya and Tessa, he becomes assured that they are truly stranded, and except for the late Julian, whose remains have reached the depths of the ocean by now, no one else has accompanied them. Eventually, Rey knocks out Tessa and Kaya one by one using anesthetics stashed in his cabin and puts the duo inside the fish storage, which is revealed to have been converted into a bunker area.
After waking up, a terrified Kaya and Tessa realize that whatever Rey is planning to do with them, they are not the first victims of it, as signs of former captives are scattered throughout the bunker. Agonizing over their present condition, the friend duo tries to find a way out, to no avail. The next day, Rey delivers some food inside the bunker, but as Kaya tries to get out, he closes the hatch on them, threatening consequences if they don’t comply with his commands. Wracked with fear and anxiety, Kaya and Tessa await their terrible fate, and a barely alive Xander lies helplessly on the deck of the trawler.
The next day, a certain Dr. Curtis Hunt arrives near the trawler’s location in his luxury yacht, and as he meets with Rey in his trawler, the situation becomes clear as daylight. Rey traffics migrants from border areas near the Bahamas, and Hunt, the crooked doctor, harvests organs from the hapless victims. Hunt has a rich clientele who compensate him for his risky, illegal, heinous organ trafficking business—and he shares a meager cut of it with Rey. A seemingly psychopathic Hunt justifies his actions, stating that they are ‘saving lives’ every day. After checking out the latest victims, Hunt wastes no time in operating on Xander and procuring his organs, something which Kaya and Tessa witness in absolute dread while peeping through the crevices of the bunker. Hunt and Rey throw Xander’s remains in the sea, which turns into chum for sharks real soon. Tessa blames herself for their present predicament, and Kaya somehow consoles her friend.
Meanwhile, Kaya has managed to find a piece of metal wire, using which she has been trying to pry open an air vent that leads to the backside of the deck. Rey and Hunt drag Tessa out of the bunker to operate on her next, and in the dark of the night, Kaya manages to get herself out of the bunker by opening the air vent.
Did Kaya and Tessa Survive?
In Rey’s absence, Kaya enters the control room of the trawler and tries to use the radio to call for help, but the connection fails. Kaya decides to sabotage the trawler by severing control wires, and seeing Hunt preparing to operate on Tessa, she takes a harpoon with her to rescue her friend. Kaya shoots Hunt with the harpoon, and freeing herself, Tessa stabs the doctor in the neck. Leaving Hunt bleeding to his death, Tessa and Kaya jump into the ocean, much to Rey’s dismay, who arrives too late to capture them. As the friend duo swims towards Hunt’s yacht, Rey decides to chase them with the trawler, which remains immobile thanks to Kaya’s quick-wittedness. Tessa is injured, and even with the support of a lifeboat, it becomes difficult for Kaya to swim while dragging her along. Realizing this, Tessa forces Kaya to leave her behind; otherwise, both of them will drown to death for nothing. An aggrieved Kaya promises her friend that she will return with help, and reaching the yacht, she tries to establish connection with the coast guards on radio. Eventually, Kaya succeeds, and she is instructed by the authorities to search for a navigational beacon that will allow them to track down the yacht. On Hunt’s laptop, Kaya sees the organ trafficking ring putting up elaborate auctions worldwide on the captive victims and is horrified to see herself among them. She reports the ongoing situation to the authorities and manages to find the navigational beacon, which can be activated by throwing it into the ocean.
In Dead Sea‘s ending, Kaya realizes that Rey has managed to swim to the yacht as well and is trying to take care of loose ends by killing Kaya. With the beacon and a flare gun at her disposal, Kaya tries to ambush Rey but gets herself caught instead. Rey stabs her, and getting him in closer proximity, Kaya fires the flare gun into his mouth, killing Rey almost instantly. A bleeding, injured Kaya somehow manages to throw the beacon to the ocean, and the coast guards arrive in the morning to find a nearly lifeless Kaya on the yacht. Surprisingly, Tessa has managed to survive on the open ocean, bleeding all the while, and the coast guards bring the friend duo back to the Florida Keys. It goes without saying that an investigation into Hunt’s trafficking ring will begin, and authorities will apprehend his clients and other associates. Kaya wakes up to see her father and brother by her side, while she is being taken to be treated along with Tessa, and the two friends exchange a glance, presumably thanking their stars and acknowledging each other’s presence for their respective assistance in this seemingly impossible survival. As the movie ends, it becomes quite clear that the lives of Tessa and Kaya will never be the same again, as having such a close call with death will surely reshape their worldview in a major way.
