It's a fish-eat-fish world down there, according to Deep Sea 3D, "down there" referring to all those leagues under the sea, which Howard Hall, using the latest IMAX technology, has combed for his enjoyable look at the life aquatic. A grade-school field trip that should be fun for all ages, if only because of the indescribably bizarre creatures it sends our way, Deep Sea 3D comes to us with a theme. Call it the Chain of Being, the Circle of Life or Shit Happens, but the movie focuses on the symbiotic relationships that keep the underwater ecosystems in balance. Sometimes, this translates (almost literally) as "I'll scratch your back, you scratch mine." Other times, it's a bit more sinister. All I can say in the movie's defense is that not once did I hear a child scream.
On the other hand, there were plenty of oohs and aahs. Visiting various coral reefs and kelp rafts, as well as scraping along the ocean floor, the movie is pleasantly immersive, only occasionally sending a shark's teeth snapping at our noses. Overall, it's like being inside a giant aquarium, with the disembodied voices of Johnny Depp and Kate Winslet there to tell us what's going on. But the real stars of the show are those freaky-deaky critters ' the wolf eel, the frog fish, the moon jellies, which drift toward the camera in a scene straight out of Finding Nemo. Believe it or not, there's a creature that eats jellyfish (on buttered toast?) for breakfast. And then there's something called the fried-egg jellyfish. I think I'll stick with the sea scallops.
