Now Playing: Meg

Author: James Somerton
Location: Canada

"Meg"

Directed by Matt Reeves
Written by Carl Gottlieb
Produced by J.J. Abrams

CAST
Jake Gyllenhaal as Terrance Shaye
Eric Bana as Dr. Edward Johns
Rachel Griffiths as Dr. Helena Jones
Portia de Rossi as Vivian Wayys
Terrance Stamp as Jonathan Baker

Tagline: "The Most Vicious Predator In History... Is No Longer History"

SYNOPSIS
66 Million Years Ago...
A heard of Shantungosaurus are grazing along a misty shoreline.
Watching them from afar is a great mighty predator. Out from the trees crashes
the giant Tyrannosaurus Rex. The herbivores flee but their speed can't
match the Rex's and it catches one quickly, biting into it's neck and
devouring it. Another Shantungosaurus lingers in the area, too old to
keep up with the others. It runs into the water and the Rex follows. The
tide is rising and soon both beasts are ripped out to sea. The rex
battles to stay above water but it's small arms make it nearly impossible.
It lets out a deafening roar that is cut short when a giant fish leaps
out of the water and bites down on the Rex's neck, pulling it under.
The shark's massive jaws engulf the Rex's entire head once under water.
The Tyrannosaurus is devoured by the greatest predator in history; The
Megalodon.

Present Day...
Terrance Shaye, a marine biologist for the University of Southern
California, is diving off the southern shores of Australia. He and his team
are researching a new species of Phylum Cnidaria, or deep water coral,
that has been discovered here. It seems to be overpowering some of the
other native plant life. One of the team members begins inspecting the
coral but, after closer inspection, he realized that it is not coral at
all, but bone. Whale bones that look to have been broken. They scatter
the ocean floor here. Terrance Shaye looks over just in time to see
his colleague devoured in one gulp by a massive shark. Bigger than any
shark he had ever seen. In a panic, he rushes back to the boat.

Terrance returns to land and tries to tell people of what he's seen but
no one believes him. Must have been a great white shark. But two
doctors named Edward Johns and Helena Jones believe him. They've been
studying the prehistoric ancestor of the great white shark, the megalodon,
for years and have always believed that it still lives in the deepest
parts of the ocean. Now they have proof. With the help of a shark expert
named Jonathan Baker, they set out to find the Megalodon that is
apparently hunting in the Australian water.

News reporter, Vivian Wayys, is reporting on the fifth ship
disappearance this month when she hears the Megalodon rumors. This is too good a
scoop to pass up and she bribes her way onto the team, siting that she
could be of help letting the people know exactly what is going on off
the shores. After practice diving with Great Whites, an experience that
nearly leaves Vivian Wayys shell shocked, they prepare to head out to
sea. They have little trouble finding the great fish but all their
preparing has meant nothing. No one can prepare for a shark this large. But
Vivian now has video of the behemoth and airs it on the news. All of
Australia, and most of the world, is in an uproar now. Press boats,
researchers, and even hunters are now setting out to sea, looking for the
Megalodon. Disturbing it for the first time in millions of years. The
revelation of it's existence draws in tourists from all over the world, who
go on helicopter rides to try and spot it in the water. But it's
nowhere to be found out in the ocean anymore. It's closer to land. And It's
Hunting. Anywhere the water is deep enough for it, is now a danger
zone. The greatest predator in all of history, has developed a taste for
man.

BUDGET
$70,000,000

RATING
PG-13, for characters in peril, violence, and some course language.

TRIVIA
- When the Megalodon turns into a sort of tourist attraction, Terrance
Shaye and Jonathan Baker fight to stop the dangerous activities of the
tourists, especially when one low-flying helicopter is attacked by the
shark. But Helena Jones and Edward Johns use their shark knowledge to
make money from the tourists, creating a rift in the group. Vivian Wayys
only reports on the events.

-Vivian Wayys and Terrance Shaye have a budding romance in the movie.

-The cast is made up of mostly Australian actors; with the exception of
Gyllenhaal, who is American, and Stamp, who is British.

-Matt Reeves and J.J. Abrams were responsible for the hit monster movie
"Cloverfield". "Meg" would also rarely show the monster, mostly only
seen in silhouette from above the water, and quick glimpses of it early
on when it attacks the T-Rex and Terrance Shaye's colleague. It would
obviously be seen in the final moments as well.

-We would see at least one of the ships that Vivian Wayys reports
getting attacked by the shark. The shark would never be seen in this scene
except for, possibly, its teeth.

-This is loosely based on an acclaimed novel of the same name that has
been nicknamed "Jurassic Shark".

-The final 40 minutes of the movie would be very action packed, with
military vessels attempting to destroy the Megalodon after it had ravaged
a ship port and killed many people. This would possibly take place in
a storm, making it even harder to spot the shark in the water. It would
eventually be killed, to the dismay of Jonathan Baker, who wanted to
study it. The ending would also reveal that the Megalodon had bred,
opening the door for a sequel entitled "Primal Waters; Meg 2"