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The Big Blue Movie Review

The Big Blue is a 1988 adventure drama film directed by Luc Besson and starring Jean Marc-Barr, Jean Reno and Rosanna Arquette. It’s a very moving, but overlong movie.

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“‘Cause you have to find a good reason to come back up…

and I have a hard time finding one“

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The story follows the rivalry between Enzo and Jacques, two childhood friends and now world-renowned free divers. This is a very strange movie for Luc Besson and it was his sophomore effort. It is international in locations, casting and languages spoken, but English is primarily used. That was problematic for Jean Reno as I found his English quite bad and his acting was over-the-top here.

But I still really liked his character. Enzo is so likable and fun that it’s difficult not to care for him. As for Jacques, he fares a bit worse. Though Jean Marc-Barr did a lot to transcend this somewhat thin role with his excellent, very emotive performance, the character needed a bit more substance.

It is fascinating how homoerotic this movie is and apparently Besson was totally clueless that he made such a film. You can read it as a gay metaphor – two male friends would rather choose to dive together than be with a woman. That is how the film can be interpreted and it doesn’t help that the camera focuses extensively on Jacques as Marc-Barr surely was very good-looking and sensual in the role.

But The Big Blue is still a film about the allure of the underwater world and this is where I connected with it the most as I myself love to snorkel. I got the main character’s obsession with water and the movie is beautifully sensual and incredibly atmospheric in its cinematography. It is aptly titled because it’s one of the bluest movies ever made. It’s such a delight to see. The score is also incredible and quite soothing.

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Rosanna Arquette got a very thankless role due to the problematic script, but she did still deliver a solid performance and was very likable in the role. That’s the thing with this movie – it features good-looking, likable people and impressive cinematography, so the critics were too harsh toward it. Yes, it’s overlong, but it’s also poetic, dreamy and very touching in its ending. Its exoticism was undeniable and it is a perfect summer watch for sure.

The Big Blue is thematically ambiguous, overlong and slightly written in its characters. However, this is still a very underrated Luc Besson movie that features good-looking people surrounded by a lot of blue water, making the movie gorgeous to look at, sensual and very atmospheric. The ending is quite moving and the actors are all very memorable. The immense allure of diving was wonderfully showcased here and that was very relatable to me personally.

My Rating – 4