The haunting psychological drama, Deep Water is also an intense exploration, of the problematic relationship between two people who are called together but should have never been. The idea of the film, to allow a wife to engage in affairs in order to enforce a tentative peace, is provocative in its own right, and used as a sobering contrast to the issues of control, obsession, and moral ambiguity. Because her extra marital affairs are getting immersed more and more with the fact that Vic himself has emerged as being interested in an evil fashion with the disappearances of her lovers, the story has propelled with a slow paced tension that keeps the viewer interested. The effect of the film is disturbing and prying and it raises the question of where friendship should stop or where the dark side of deep desires of a human nature is located.
Aesthetically, Deep Water uses subtle use of colors and outdoor shots that build up an atmosphere, the same approach in the plotline itself. The cozy setting of a small town is juxtaposed to the dark secrets hiding behind the Van Allen marriage. It is methodical in the rhythm and the emotional undercurrents are left to boil, until they come to the point and there are instances of subdued menace and mental anxiety. Acting is strong with particular impressive work of lead actors who demonstrate the precarious nature of marriage and the creeper edge of Vic toward smartness and subtlety. The minor characters such as Melinda and the town people contribute to the added complexity, as they place an indication of the social pressure and grey areas of the person that run the story.
The most striking was when the film did not hold back on showing how boredom, repression and unexpressed needs can prove disastrous. The morality is fuzzy and I found myself wondering on the line between ordinary and evil after realizing what kind of person Vic really was. The climax was very subtle and emotional and made one feel desperate and that all is bound to rot away. In the end, Deep Water is a chilling reflection on how toxic the secrets can be and how dangerous the unsatisfied desire can be – a disturbing, but thought-provoking movie that is hard to forget after watching it.
