Writer-producer Scott Walker’s sophomore feature film, The Tank comes after a well-received crime thriller called Frozen Ground (Nicolas Cage.) This time he tackles the subject matter firmly in the horror movie niche with a young family versus whatever it is that lives underground. While the story flails around in B-movie territory, there is nothing inherently disappointing about this creature feature that pretends momentarily it could be something else. The signposts aren’t well hidden within the narrative with plenty of foreshadowing early on.
Ben and his wife Jules run a pet shop with their young daughter Reia in tow. They talk factually about axolotls when one of the pets awaiting sale eats another within its territory. Jule’s knowledge of all things furry, slimy, finned, or feathered stems from her current vocation as she talks about what she has learned while studying to be a vet. Their store “Raining Cats and Dogs” doesn’t seem to be doing very well.
Subsequently neither does their bank balance. They discuss various options to not become bankrupt in between coming across as a pretty close knot family. In what becomes a regular way to navigate into the rest of the storyline, each plot point seems overly spelled out. These happy coincidences just happen to lead them into troubled waters. Literally.
“He’s not a lizard, he’s an amphibian, like some of the oldest, baddest dinosaurs,”
Quote from The Tank movie 2023
Looking for where to watch The Tank? rent it from Google Play.
Movie recommendations in the creature feature subgenre? The Black Demon | Azrael 2024 | Something in the Water (2024) | The Last Breath or Crocodile Vengeance has what you want for horror in the water.
Creature Feature, The Tank
After a visit from a local lawyer, they are informed there is a property no one knows about in Hobbits Bay. Almost immediately they set off to see if it might be the answer to all their woes. With a foreboding mention of dark and mysterious family secrets to uncover, they head off to a remote seaside shack. Looking more like someone at some time intentionally covered this property up, Ben and Jules slowly unravel his past.
They also commence fixing the place up. Of course, no good closet full of skeletons would be complete without a sketchy ominous find. Ben discovers a rusty old hatch. It has access to locally sourced fresh water meant to be able to supply the property with all its viscous requirements. The Tank is utilized as a pivotal set piece where all the tension for the film is kept.
Once inside The Tank, their inherited beach-located estate looks to be more and more like something they wish they had known about earlier. It shows a massive amount of promise financially. However, Jules feels deep down there is something very wrong with everything. It’s at this point, that The Tank would like you to consider the possibility that there might be something supernatural underfoot. But with plenty of growling coming from the hills and strange noises in the middle of the night, most horror movie aficionados know better.
Monsters that Hunt
With plenty of family history, buried secrets, and of course, the creatures, this thriller movie becomes very much a horror movie. However, The Tank suffers from what is commonly known as “bad decision-making.” The characters lack the vital ingredients to invest in one way or another. More to the point, they do some inane and reckless things in an endeavor to stay alive. Special effects are effective yet unimpressive overall but do the job of yielding what they need to do.
The Tank is the type of creature feature that will scratch that itch if this is the type of movie that you like.
The Tank is rated
2.5 salamanders that will hunt anything that moves out of 5
