Film Review – Chum (2026)

      **Chum, 2026.**

      Directed by Jonathan Zuck.

      Starring Alice Eve, Eric Michael Cole, Elle Haymond, Sarah Siadat, Johnny Gaffney, Lisa Yaro, and Jim Klock.

      **SYNOPSIS:**

      A newly married couple sets off on a yacht trip with friends in the Mediterranean, only to find themselves in a deadly situation involving a predatory shark and a psychopathic killer among them, turning their idyllic getaway into a struggle for survival.

      Jonathan Zuck’s Chum, co-written and directed by him, presents itself as a mix of a climate change public service announcement and a shark attack horror film. However, the execution feels clumsy, leading one to hope that the intention was to be intentionally bad rather than simply unwatchable.

      Alice Eve’s character, Tina, who is unable to swim and reluctant to join this cruise, finds herself on a yacht ride to celebrate her destination wedding in the Mediterranean. She is already facing marriage problems with her husband, Tom (Eric Michael Cole), to the point where their marriage has been annulled without their guests' knowledge. While Tom is not a bad person—having previously carried her to safety after an injury on a hiking trail—he represents a seemingly too-good-to-be-true partner and is a passionate environmental activist. However, Tina has professional aspirations that directly conflict with Tom's climate change initiatives, creating further tension in their already strained relationship.

      Although this premise could generate interesting drama, the performances are largely unconvincing, resulting in unintentional laughter, with Alice Eve standing out as the only somewhat competent actor. The remaining cast members, like Tina’s disengaged sister (Elle Haymond) and their friends, often come across as annoying. The absence of believable characters detracts from the filmmakers’ apparent desire to deliver both mindless entertainment and a heartfelt narrative. The creators are invested in the environmental message and wish for viewers to care about the central relationship, yet that connection feels impossible as characters, including the captain, start inexplicably falling overboard, making the plot seem contrived.

      In keeping with the environmental theme, a shark appears, despite the captain’s assurances that they are not in shark-infested waters. While there are glimpses of blood-soaked water, the violence and suspense fail to impress, particularly as the film dedicates excessive time to showing a shark that looks consistently silly.

      However, the worst aspect of the film is the inclusion of Roy (Jim Klock), who lost his wife to the same shark five years prior while celebrating their wedding, and now aims to help the characters survive. Spoiling the synopsis further, Roy has become a psychopathic killer, planning to use the group as bait to attract the shark so he can exact revenge.

      The film unfolds through sequences where Tina and her friends face danger while also inexplicably falling overboard in a comical manner, suggesting the filmmakers struggled with positioning the characters for their intended plot developments. One scene involving a shark kill raises questions about the character's logic in trying to escape both the shark and Roy. On a brighter note, there’s a ludicrous moment when Tina attempts to confront the shark herself, evoking memories of visually extreme moments that feel outlandish even within this context. More scenes like this might have enlivened the film.

      Chum is also an exceedingly confused film that occasionally narrates Roy’s thoughts, portraying him as a tortured soul mourning his wife’s loss. Still, it fails to address or acknowledge his murderous actions or newfound thrill for killing. His concluding voiceover accentuates the film's lack of coherence from start to finish. At one point, a character removes an arrow from another who has been impaled only to ask, “Are you okay?” The film is far from okay; it is incompetent at every level.

      Flickering Myth Rating – Film: ★ / Movie: ★ ★

      Robert Kojder