Dead Sea (2024) Review: Stranded With the Wrong People

Film Title: Dead Sea Cast: Isabel Gravitt, Genneya Walton, Alexander Wraith, Koa Tom, Dean Cameron, Garrett Wareing Director: Phil Volken Writer: Phil Volken Distribution: Vertical Entertainment Production: 2024 Release Date: July 26, 2024 Review by: Mother of Movies

There is a news story that feels like it’s from a different lifetime, ancient in internet years, but it still haunts the travel blogs and “Top 10 Scariest Moments” lists. You remember the one? Tourists in the Bahamas flock to “Pig Beach” to swim with adorable swine in crystal clear water. It sounds whimsical until you read the fine print of reality, where nature decided to turn a family vacation into a tragedy right in front of the kids. There is something profoundly unsettling about the juxtaposition of paradise and predation; it is a stark, bloody reminder that the ocean doesn’t care about your Instagram aesthetic or how much you paid for the excursion.

Dead Sea (2024), now streaming on Prime (and no, this isn’t a screener; I paid my Bezos tax just like everyone else), taps into that same primal fear. However, writer-director Phil Volken decides to swap the swine for a young group of friends looking to blow off steam, and the sharks for something far more avaricious. In a world where global affairs often feel like a constant auction of human dignity, Volken’s latest aquatic thriller reminds Mother of Movies that sometimes the most dangerous predator isn’t the one with the fins, but the one with the mortgage to pay.

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The Setup: Independence and Young Love

The film opens by establishing a very specific dynamic that defies the usual “spoiled brat” trope we see in survival thrillers. We start with Kaya (Isabel Gravitt), a young woman who carries the weight of the world on her shoulders. Thank goodness she isn’t the mother of the young boy we see in the opening frames, but the older sister. In scenes spanning just a minute and a half, the film efficiently communicates that the mother figure is absent, either left or deceased, leaving a void that Kaya seems forced to fill.

Kaya heads out in a Jeep that looks brand new, with no roof, and open to the elements. When she tells her father she is off to see a friend, he attempts to offer her money. In a telling moment of characterization, she flatly refuses. This isn’t the petulance of a trust fund kid; it reads as a rigid declaration of independence, perhaps hinting at a strained relationship where financial reliance feels like a trap. She drives off on her own terms, meeting up with her friend Tessa (Genneya Walton).

Tessa is the catalyst for the trip, determined to play matchmaker and hook Kaya up with a cute boy’s friend. They are headed for the Bahamas, and Tessa alludes to Kaya’s dad being an alcoholic, insisting that Kaya deserves to let her hair down. Acting as chauffeurs of the testosterone type, Julian (Garrett Wareing) and Xander (Koa Tom), who, like any characters written for the young adult crowd, seem to view life through a “nothing is dangerous” lens.

Xander confiscates phones to force everyone to “live in the moment.” It’s a nice sentiment that immediately flags him as the moral center of the group. They head to the Bahamas, specifically to visit Crystal Cay Lagoon caves on jet skis, bouncing through the waves. They dive with helmets, utilizing all the safety equipment, and honestly, everything is above board. You couldn’t find fault with their actions initially; there is no “stupid” behavior here, just fun adventure. But speed is a seductress.

I foresaw the crash before it happened. They are going just a bit too fast for the chop. Tessa falls, the boyfriend falls, and then the other jet ski hits the swimmer. The water turns red, and the genre shifts gears.

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Why You Should Fear The Fisherman – Dead Sea

Initially, Dead Sea sets itself up like a standard shark movie. Mother of Movies gravitates toward anything with dangerous animals, especially when there’s underwater footage, and Volken delivers that deep‑blue claustrophobia. We get the obligatory aerial shot: the group stranded in the middle of the ocean, tiny dots in a vast pool of blue, trying to figure out their next move. It builds that pit‑of‑your‑stomach tension as you wait for teeth to break the surface. But instead of a fin, salvation appears in the form of a fishing trawler.

Enter Rey (Alexander Wraith), a fisherman who spots them within hollering distance. But Rey isn’t here to be a hero. As soon as he takes his hat off, revealing a steely gaze, the vibe shifts from rescue to capture. It becomes clear that Rey views these kids not as survivors, but as distinct opportunities.

When Jet Ski Joyrides Meet Back-Alley Surgery

The film makes a sharp left turn here, abandoning the creature feature for a narrative about human greed. Rey isn’t a pirate or a sexual deviant in the traditional sense; he’s a supplier. The arrival of “The Doctor” (Dean Cameron) cements this. With his gold watch and utter disdain for the inconvenience of murder, the Doctor marks up Xander’s body with a marker like he’s prepping a side of beef. He looks at his watch as if these three teens are a mere blight on his precious time, creating a villain who is terrifyingly bureaucratic about butchery.

The middle act is where the film finds its sea legs, largely due to the production design and the visceral nature of the practical effects. The belly of Rey’s boat is a claustrophobic trap that contrasts beautifully with the open freedom of the ocean above. The set design feels spacious yet trapping, a rusted iron cage floating in nowhere. The gore is handled with restraint but high impact. The mechanics of death are left to the imagination, but there is plenty of blood spatter. The surgical instruments are laid out with definitive finality, creating a dread that is far more effective than a jump scare.

A Surgical Shit Sandwich

We don’t need to see every incision to feel the horror of the Doctor sawing through Xander while Kaya watches through a small opening in the roof. The sound design here does heavy lifting, letting the wet sounds of surgery fill the silence.

However, the logic begins to take on water faster than a punctured hull. Kaya manages to escape her restraints, gets on the radio, and finds a spear gun. She dispatches the Doctor, who stands down with odd bravery, showing a lack of fear of death that feels bizarre and slightly underwritten.

But the biggest issue is Rey’s other boat. It turns out Rey has a luxury vessel, The Haleh, parked remarkably close to his rust-bucket trawler. It’s so close that when Kaya eventually escapes into the water, she swims to it. This narrative convenience is a bitter pill to swallow. Why is his floating mansion just sitting there, unlocked, with his laptop open, displaying his human trafficking sales ledger while auctions flick past, revealing she is to be the biggest windfall? It’s a lazy plot device. If the Coast Guard or a passing boat had boarded, they would have seen everything immediately. It turns Rey from a calculating predator into a careless amateur.

But, just as I was ready to write off the climax, the film redeems itself with a kill so stylish it made me forgive the GPS nonsense. Rey, having tracked Kaya to the luxury boat, stabs her. It seems like the end. But Kaya, in a moment of desperate brilliance, seduces him into lowering his guard before firing a flare gun directly into his mouth. Seeing Rey light up like a twinkly Christmas light from the inside out was a visual treat, poetic, and arguably one of the best kills of the year. The precision took me off guard, and his steely nature finally melted away into ash.

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The Verdict – A Bloody Dive into Human Trafficking Horror

Dead Sea is a mixed bag. The performances, particularly from Gravitt and Wraith, work nicely in the film even when the script drifts momentarily into absurdity. The practical effects on the injuries, Xander’s head wound and broken leg, are top-tier. Yet, the lack of spatial logic regarding the two boats and the Coast Guard’s convenient arrival dampens the tension.

It’s not a film that will redefine the genre, but it offers enough tension to keep you from checking your phone. It reminds us that while the ocean is deadly, the man offering you a hand up might just be checking the price of your kidneys.

Dead Sea is rated

3 Floating Chop Shops out of 5

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Filmmaker & Cast Note – Phil Volken 

Phil Volken is no stranger to high-stakes aquatic tension. His previous work often explores the sea, and he has a 2026 project in the works titled The Bay. He seems to have a “seacentric” filmmaking stamp, often utilizing the isolation of the open water to strip characters of their resources.

Need More Water-Based Oceanic Thrillers and Horror Movies? Watch Any of These Titles

• Turistas (2006): Backpackers in Brazil find themselves on the wrong end of an organ harvesting ring; similar themes of exploitation in paradise.
• Harpoon (2019): Three friends, one boat, and a lot of sharp objects. Dark comedy meets survival when secrets are revealed at sea.
• The Shallows (2016): If you prefer a shark threat over the human one, this is the gold standard for modern survivalist horror.
• Adrift (2018): For those who want the ocean survival aspect with a heavier dose of romance and tragedy based on true events.
• Dangerous Animals (2025): For those who want ocean survival with more sharks, less romance, and a much meaner, bloodier streak.

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Streaming Options for Dead Sea 2024