Review: Meg 2: The Trench
Shark fans have been anxious to see the sequel to the 2018 film “The Meg,” and on Aug. 4, “Meg 2: The Trench” audiences swarmed theaters. The film aligned with its prequel, taking inspiration from its novel predecessor such as introducing a captive Meg and new prehistoric creatures.
Published in 1997, “Meg: A Novel of Deep Terror” tells the story of paleontologist and marine biologist Jonas Taylor in a journey to redeem himself and take down the Megalodon, a prehistoric shark. Its sequel novel published in 1999 titled “The Trench” features Taylor and more Megs back at it again, focusing on an espionage plot and introducing additional prehistoric animals, namely the Kronosaurus.
The loose movie adaptation of the first novel released in 2018 titled simply “The Meg” stars Jason Statham as Jonas, and it received somewhat positive reviews from audiences and mixed reviews from critics. Most praised the visual effects but criticized the film for its use of mindless action and comedy over horror elements. The movie gained a cult following due to its lack of logic and physics and was deemed the “Fast & Furious” of shark movies.
When “Meg 2: The Trench” was released, fans of the book series immediately took notice of its parallels with the novel. Reinforcing the film’s slogan, “New Meg, Old Chum,” returning characters James ‘Mac’ Mackreides (Cliff Curtis) and DJ (Page Kennedy) are both great in their starring roles, with DJ being the most humorous character of the film. The reveal of Suyin Zhang’s (Li Bingbing) death is mended with the introduction of her brother, Jiumming Zhang (Wu JingRigas). Jiumming and Jonas have a great on-screen bond as brothers-in-law and both act as parental figures for Meiying (Shuya Sophia Cai), Zhang’s daughter. The prequel film doubtlessly plays the “scumbag billionaire” card better with Jack Morris (Rainn Wilson).
Morris was present in many scenes of the first film and brought a sense of wealthy incompetence which would eventually lead to him being devoured by a Meg. The film’s new billionaire, Hillary Driscoll (Sienna Guillory) is a key character in the espionage plot. Fans and critics alike chewed apart this bulk of the film, as the focus on an illegal mining operation in the trench is not as eye-catching as a monster shark eating people. Montes (Sergio Peris Mencheta) acts as the film’s primary human antagonist, and while his action scenes with Jonas are entertaining, audiences have again nitpicked the focus on human characters over the Megs. One of the film’s three Megs deemed the “biggest Meg anyone’s ever seen” by Jonas feels somewhat underwhelming with its presence.
The latest Meg film has received an increase in positive reviews from audiences but a slightly lower critic rating than the first. Fans praised the more intense monster action and increased jumpscares. Even though a kaiju-sized octopus replaced the novel’s Kronosauruses, moviegoers seemed to enjoy its appearance nonetheless. The movie succeeded at the box office during its opening weekend with $30 million, even outswimming Oppenheimer with $28.7 million.
When the third book “Meg: Primal Waters” is eventually adapted, fans are sure to be ready to splash down in their seats to watch more of Jason Statham’s fight against the Megalodon.
3/5
