‘Below’ Review: Josh Hartnett Battles a Sea Creature in Netflix’s Likably Silly Newfoundland-Set Thriller
Netflix's new thriller "Below" is a six-episode creature feature set in Newfoundland that follows fisherman Calvin Penney (Josh Hartnett) as strange and deadly events plague his dying town, Snook's Arm. As a Portuguese fishing vessel vanishes, an oily iceberg appears in the harbour and people begin disappearing, marine zoologist Fonda Howander (Mackenzie Davis) suspects something dangerous lurks beneath the water. The show opens with an effectively grounded prologue set in 1986, depicting a real historical practice of government-sponsored house relocations in Newfoundland, which lends authenticity to what is otherwise an outlandish and intentionally silly creature feature.
The show's central conflict stems from Snook's Arm facing imminent closure, with a new vote requiring only 75 per cent support for relocation (down from 90 per cent five years earlier). Calvin and his family represent potentially deciding votes in this referendum. As mysterious deaths and disappearances escalate, the town faces added peril hosting its annual reunion weekend, which will bring mainlanders and voluntary relocatees back to town, coinciding dangerously with whatever creature inhabits the waters. The series balances genuine Newfoundland filming locations and verifiable provincial details against deliberately ridiculous elements like CG icebergs and actors attempting bizarre accents.
- Josh Hartnett faces a sea creature in a dying Newfoundland town on Netflix.
- Six-episode thriller mixes authentic Newfoundland details with deliberately silly creature-feature elements.
- Opening prologue grounds outlandish story with real historical house relocations.
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"Below" is a new six-episode thriller on Netflix set in Snook's Arm, a small Newfoundland fishing town struggling to survive as its population shrinks. The residents face a crucial vote on whether to close the town and relocate its inhabitants.
Before the relocation vote, mysterious deaths and disappearances plague the town, apparently caused by something dangerous lurking beneath the water. A marine zoologist arrives to investigate whilst the town prepares to hold its annual reunion weekend. The gathering brings back former residents to a setting now marked by unexplained deaths and disappearances.
The series combines genuine historical details about Newfoundland's real experience of government-sponsored relocations with deliberately outlandish thriller elements, including a sea creature. This mixture of authenticity and intentional excess gives the show its distinctive character. It balances grounded setting details with increasingly implausible supernatural events.