Bérénice Bejo in “Under Paris” 2024. IMDb photo

MOVIE INFO

“UNDER PARIS”
Action, Drama, Horro, Sport, Thriller
To save Paris from a bloodbath, a grieving scientist is forced to face her tragic past when a giant shark appears in the Seine.
Length: 104 minutes
Rating: Severe frightening and intense scenes, moderate violence and gore, with mild profanity, alcohol, drugs and smoking
Director: Xavier Gens
Writers: Yannick Dahan, Maud Heywang, Xavier Gens
Stars: Bérénice Bejo, Nassim Lyes, Léa Léviant

It’s on Netflix, yes it is. It’s about sharks in the Seine, yes, that Seine. Yes, sharks. In the already polluted famous river where Gene Kelly made love to Leslie Caron.

If that doesn’t keep you on the beach, try this: A competing Olympic swimmer, Belgium’s Claire Michel, became sick after swimming in the Seine — a river that’s faced frequent water quality and safety concerns.

Here it is. “Under Paris,” director Xavier Gens’ (“Frontier”) thriller set in the World Triathlon Championships in a future Paris. It’s at the top of Netflix top movies this week. Nice timing.

The big news is that it’s a really well-made film. I’m serious. Ask the writers: Yannick Dahan, Maud Heywang and Gens himself.

Yes, it’s silly. But by the time you finish it, you’ll be convinced that it could happen. Well, kind of convinced.

Sophia (Bérénice Bejo, Oscar nominee for “The Artist”) is an ocean scientist studying sharks in the Pacific. As the film starts, Sophia and crew are looking at the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. (It really exists. It’s like a sick Mississippi.)

Her team is tracking a group of tagged sharks. How they do that is probably being saved for another shark movie called “Shark Roundup.”

But one signal is from a big shark called Lilith, so a special team is sent down to get a little blood from her. Really?

I can tell you that this is the first part where you should put your couch pillow in front of your eyes.

Suddenly (actually three years later), a group of “shark savers” meets with Sofia. They know where her Lilith is living now.

She is somehow floating around in the famous river that Gene Kelly dances around.

Then we get a crazy Mayor of Paris (aren’t they all?) who doesn’t really care. She just wants a really groovy triathlon and lots of people in Paris to watch the world’s best swimmers jump in the Seine. I agree with that part. We came for that, right?

The bad news! We all find out that the famous river is now full of baby sharks!

Now the crazy Mayor of Paris has to hide all of this. In the famous Paris catacombs is the entire city, full of the world’s sports nuts, who have come to see jumpers, runners, cyclists and Seine swimmers. She has to show them that all is like, kind of OK.

But this is where this well-acted, beautifully filmed movie really gets dark, wet and bloody.

A bevy of other French actors fill the film: Nassim Lyes, Lea Leviant and Anne Marivin as the crazy mayor.

The camera, which was under the Seine with the sharks and in the gorgeous streets of Paris, was held by Nicolas Massart (“The Crimson Rivers”).

I will tell you no more. Just that Netflix has a summer hit on its hands, and they and the bars of Paris are in for a really big surprise.

I repeat: “Under Paris” is a really good hot summer day in front of the fins …. I mean fans. “Under Paris” streams on Netflix.

J.P. Devine of Waterville is a former stage and screen actor.