Meg 2: The Trench
2023
*½
Director: Ben Wheatley
Cast: Jason Statham, Wu Jing, Sophia Cai, Page Kennedy, Sergio Peris-Mencheta, Skyler Samuels, Cliff Curtis, Melissanthi Mahut, Whoopie Van Raam, Kiran Sonia Sawar, Felix Mayr
Six years have passed, and rescue diver Jonas Taylor has become an all-around action man and a single dad to an adopted daughter. All hell breaks loose again when Megs and other creatures escape the Trench while the thermocline is temporarily ruptured. The Meg offered consistent silliness and occasional goofy fun, but the sequel doesn't come up with anything new. The movie spends half of the runtime in the Trench, where the team discover a secret underwater mining facility. Down there, Ben Wheatley, better known for low-key indie films such as Kill List, directs some ridiculous and almost incomprehensible action set pieces. On the surface, things are a bit more coherent, but also hopelessly stupid and predictable. Like last time, it all ends in a carnage at a tourist resort.
