A wild thriller that may be almost ridiculous, has Ben Affleck feeling furious and Ana de Armas having a lot of fun. Deep Water is about a rich husband with serious jealousy issues in an unconventional marriage arrangement. The movie is based on Patricia Highsmith’s book and contains abundant scenes of nudity, kinky sex episodes and killings. But the eye candy does not hold up through a failed effort at psychological machinations.
Vic (Affleck) and Melinda (de Armas) Van Allen are the central figures of this movie which is set in New Orleans high society. They belong to a wealthy group of friends that socializes together. They have a daughter called Trixie (Grace Jenkins) who Melinda seems uninterested in raising. Melinda’s sexual appetite knows no bounds and Vic cannot control it. She has many lovers whom she shows off to her husband while he gets jealous but also aroused by her uncontrollable personality.
Under the influence, Melinda invites Joel (Brendan Miller), her most recent boy toy to a friend’s party. Her behavior embarrasses him and makes him feel humiliated as well as emasculated one can see how his friends like Dash Mihok or Lil Rel Howery willingly stay with such promiscuous woman while still they wonder how he can stand it all. In an angry outburst, Vic turns down Joel when he tries talking to him awkwardly about it; then he surprises Joel by admitting nonchalantly that he was responsible for making Melinda’s last boyfriend disappear without trace; this joke does not go over well with his wife however, it attracts the attention of Don Wilson (Tracy Letts), who writes books for his living, towards Vic’s response.
The main idea behind Deep Water suggests that Vic could be regarded as being complicit in cuckoldry by choice because there is nothing wrong from his point of view if Melinda sleeps with other men like a rabbit. He is furious because she brings them to their shared home, tortured by the fact that Melinda enjoys it too. Moreover, she also gets off on his anger since Melinda knows he will never leave her. Their relationship has a sick undertone which both of them seem to enjoy very much; this is what makes this movie fascinating. There’s no way this flick could have been so ridiculous at the end.
Melinda chooses to stay with Vic despite losing so many others along the way. Likewise, it does not make sense that those close to them can just accept her infidelity and think Vic is probably a murderer too for that matter; they continue laughing as more bodies pile up all around them while living it up. This doesn’t make any sense especially when everything about the Van Allen’s lives seems so public.
Ana de Armas really commits herself here as far as the nudity and unorthodox sexual positions go. However, she takes it too far playing an uncontrolled nymphomaniac. It feels like Melinda is more of a sex object than a real person in this film. She spends virtually all her time either shacking up or masturbating throughout the entire film; I am just guessing that Adriane Lyne wanted this kind of performance from her. This man has made such films as Indecent Proposal, Fatal Attraction, and Unfaithful characterized by sordid cinematic elements over time. Those movies had women who enjoyed sex but they were not just sex pawns.
Another scene in the movie provoked my uncomfortable response as well. Apparently Trixie their young daughter knows something about what happens around her: one disturbing episode involves her asking Ben Affleck whether those rumors are true concerning his family or not? Definitely not a child-like answer you expect from such a girl! Her role should have been limited in such adult rated movie Deep Water.
The plot of Deep Water is flimsy at best with weak characters. The ending is not a surprise. I guess it will attract viewers mostly because of Ana de Armas being undressed in some scenes. Deep Water is one of those late-night soft-core skin flicks.
Watch free movies on Fmovies
