Into The Blue 2: The Reef

Into the Blue 2: The Reef has less reason to exist than practically any movie I can think of. A direct-to-DVD, star-free, in-name-only sequel to the forgettable Jessica Alba/Paul Walker bikini-fest of 2005, rarely has a film been so resistible. This reality must have occurred to Stephen Herek (Mr. Holland's Opus, The Mighty Ducks), who directs with such lifelessness as to shame even the limp original. The plot is utterly routine: Sebastian (Chris Carmack) and Dani (Laura Vandervoort) are scuba diving instructors in Hawaii who are stuck in debt and take high-paying couple Azra (Marsha Thomason) and Carlton (David Anders) as clients in hopes of starting a new life. Azra and Anders are more than they seem, however, and soon reveal that they need to find two lost containers or they face the violent wrath of disgruntled mobsters. Ah, but Carlton has a British accent and Azra looks a bit like Iman, and in an empty-headed beach movie that values white American flesh that can mean only one thing: they're evil. In a film packed with stilted and unconvincing performances, the acting debut of Audrina Partridge (The Hills) stands apart; she is stunningly, completely, definitively awful, her every line sounding as though being delivered from a cue card 80-feet away. Considering how deeply lame the plot and acting are, and how many naked midriffs are exposed, I can only assume that Into the Blue 2 exists to provide masturbation material for people too young to venture into the adult section — on that level, I must confess that Laura Vandervoort looks terrific in a bikini. I suppose that's a pretty facile observation but it's tough to sound like Roger Ebert when reviewing a movie better suited to Mr. Skin. The DVD contains a few equally lame extras, including a making-of documentary that focuses more on the actors' scuba training than the film. That's not surprising; it's hard to provide insightful commentary on the cinematic equivalent of nothingness.