This Sequel Flounders After A Solid Start

When The Meg landed in theaters in 2018, critics were lukewarm, but audiences embraced it enough for it to get a sequel. It grossed over $530 million worldwide against a budget of between $138 million and $178 million, depending on what you read.

Those who turned out for the first movie get rewarded for their enthusiasm in the form of Meg 2: The Trench. Sadly, the results are underwhelming and fail to platform and showcase director Ben Wheatley’s stylistic nuances and trademarks that are potentially a great fit to elevate this type of material. Not taking advantage of them here is as criminal as the nefarious intentions of the movie’s mediocre villains.

The Meg was based on Steve Alten’s best-selling book Meg: A Novel of Deep Terror. Meg 2: The Trench is an adaptation of the sequel, The Trench, the second of six books, with a seventh on the way. Jason Statham returns as hero Jonas Taylor who, along with Wu Jing’s Jiuming, is heading up a research team to explore the ocean’s deepest depths. If things went smoothly, there wouldn’t be a book or a movie, so things go off the rails, and the expedition descends into deadly chaos due to a mix of monsters, a rival mining operation, and sabotage.

Taylor and his surviving team must find a way through the deadly titular trench to the safe harbor of a mysterious underwater facility and try to get back to their own base alive. Once there, they have to face off with those responsible for putting them out of action and leaving them to perish deep underwater. All this is happening while they try to avoid being eaten by megalodons and an array of new beastly foes. That sounds incredibly exciting, and it should be, but it runs out of steam more quickly than it should. Although much of it feels derivative and overly familiar, it has its moments. Underwater, Deepstar Six, Deep Rising, Leviathan, and even Disney’s Fantastic Voyage are among the films that may have served as inspiration here.

There are no shortage of action set pieces in Meg 2: The Trench, but once Statham’s Taylor and the team get to the surface, what tension there was runs out of steam, and it feels perfunctory rather than thrilling. By the time Meg 2: The Trench swims towards its Kaiju heavy finale, complete with a giant octopus, while there is mayhem on screen, the thrills are lower than the stakes.

Statham, as reliably Statham as ever and loving it, isn’t the only returning cast member with Cliff Curtis back as James ‘Mac’ Mackreides, Page Kennedy reprising the expanded role of DJ, and Shuya Sophia Cai is back as a now teenaged Meiying. Kennedy comes off best out of the trio, but what he’s given to play with here feels flimsy and less than what he and his character deserves. It’s hard not to think that the opportunity for him and his character to take a more central position is squandered through formulaic execution and substandard dialogue. Kennedy refers to Jaws 2 at one point, but that only highlights that this sequel is nowhere near as good as that one. The script is a problem as Meg 2: The Trench had a real opportunity to lean into the riches of camp and schlock that the genre affords it, but the end result feels flat and lacks an edge. The first film had way more bite and felt more confident in its skin.

It’s a particular shame because Wheatley, as a director, has a knack for such things, both dramatic and comedic, but very little of his flair seems to be in play here. To not allow this Ben Wheatley film to feel like a Ben Wheatley film is a lost opportunity. Even when it comes to the humor, this lacks the crackle of Sightseers, and where it could have leaned into darker sci-fi or horror, there is no trace of filmmaker’s panache displayed in his earlier work, and Wheatley does dark brilliantly. The only real elements that show any authentic touch of Wheatley’s filmmaking prowess come during the treacherous trek through the trench, where chaos and disorientating darkness reign. Why hire a director with his set of skills and not utilize them? From around the halfway mark, Meg 2: The Trench feels like an empty spectacle steamrolling over substance. Maybe that would be enough if the spectacle was up to par, but so much of that execution feels substandard for a studio movie of this scale. Some of the CGI and effects could, and should, be better. It feels more shonky than schlocky and, at times, rather dull, and that’s a crying shame.

The fact that Meg 2: The Trench kicks off so promisingly, even before the title card drops, and loses so much of its momentum at around the halfway point is a real disappointment. If all you want is monsters fighting and explosions, and you’re not bothered about anything beyond that, there is enough to tick those boxes and leave you somewhat satisfied. Beyond that, audiences will probably be left deflated and wanting. It’s not even as fun as it could and should be. If enough people turn out for Meg 2: The Trench, there might be a third, but I suspect this franchise might end up floating out to sea, which is a waste. As an exciting summer blockbuster, it sinks and is unfortunately barely fit for porpoise.