MagicReview: Thrash 2026 Review - MagicMoviesz Review

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Film Info

Director

Tommy Wirkola

Year

2026

Genre

Thriller, Horror

Runtime

86 min

Language

English

If there’s one constant in modern film history, it’s Hollywood’s obsession with mixing natural disasters with hungry predators. After giving us alligators in Crawl and sharks inside an apartment in Under Paris, director Tommy Wirkola (best known for the madness of Dead Snow and Violent Night) tries his luck with Thrash. This film went through a serious identity crisis before release—changing titles from Beneath the Storm, to Shiver, and eventually getting “dumped” by Sony onto Netflix as Thrash. Honestly, multiple title changes are usually not a good sign, and sure enough, the final product feels like ordering a premium steak but getting a cheap snack instead: fine to fill you up when you’re really bored (or desperate), but far from satisfying.

The plot is pretty straightforward—your typical no-frills survival thriller. A Category 5 hurricane (with vibes closer to a Category 6) slams into a coastal city. Amid the chaos, rising seawater brings in—surprise, surprise—a swarm of hyper-aggressive bull sharks into residential areas. We follow multiple POVs: Lisa (Phoebe Dynevor), a heavily pregnant woman trapped in her car; Dakota (Whitney Peak), an agoraphobic teenager forced to confront her fears; and their uncle Dale (Djimon Hounsou), a maritime researcher trying to play hero. Wirkola had the potential to turn this into a wild gore-fest, but for some reason, Thrash feels oddly restrained.

The film’s biggest issue is its inconsistent tone. On one hand, it tries to be very serious, especially when tackling Dakota’s trauma or Lisa’s struggle to survive late-stage pregnancy during a flood. On the other hand, the premise is pure B-movie material that should’ve gone way crazier. Tommy Wirkola, who’s usually great at crafting creative, brutal sequences, feels like he’s only half-committed here. We do get scenes of sharks biting people’s heads off, but the CGI often looks rough and underwhelming. The sharks lack any real presence—they feel more like digital assets drifting through murky water than actual threats. If you’re expecting Jaws-level tension, you might want to skip this one.

"They’re going to need to invent a Category 6 just for this one."

Phoebe Dynevor’s performance deserves some credit—she genuinely tries to bring emotional weight to a very shallow script. Imagine having to act out a childbirth scene while surrounded by sharks—logically absurd, but she manages to make you care, at least a little. Djimon Hounsou is solid as always, though his talent feels wasted in a film more interested in shark attacks than meaningful character development. The supporting characters—especially the trio of foster kids in a side subplot—mostly feel like shark bait waiting for their turn.

Narratively, the film moves too fast without allowing organic suspense to build. Thrash seems eager to jump from one action scene to another, but when it gets there, the shark-attack choreography becomes repetitive. There are a few decent set pieces—like a tense moment involving live electrical wires in floodwater—but the rest is mostly people screaming in blood-tinged water. The soundtrack doesn’t help much either, aside from a random Vanessa Carlton needle drop that somehow makes the film feel weirder rather than cooler.

In the end, Thrash is the kind of Netflix content that’ll sink into the algorithm within a couple of weeks. It’s not smart enough to be a quality thriller, but it’s also not dumb enough to become a fun cult classic like Sharknado. It’s perfect for a lazy Sunday afternoon watch while lying down and scrolling through TikTok—because even if you zone out, you won’t miss anything important. It’s an aggressively mediocre shark movie that fails to make a splash.

Score Breakdown

Cinematography 6/10

Narrative 4/10

Performance 6.5/10

Sound / Score 5/10

5.4

/10

Mixed Bag

MagicReview gives Thrash a 5.4 out of 10.

That’s all we have for now. What do you think—which shark movie is the most ridiculous but still fun to watch? And what’s your take on the increasingly bizarre premises in modern shark films? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments!

Thrash 2026 Review - MagicMoviesz Review

MagicReview gives Thrash a 5.4 out of 10.

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