12 Feet Deep (2017) – Trapped Beneath the Surface
Directed by Matt Eskandari, 12 Feet Deep (2017) is a slow-burning psychological thriller that takes a simple premise and turns it into a nightmare of fear, trauma, and survival. Set almost entirely within the confines of a public swimming pool, the film explores what happens when physical entrapment meets emotional baggage, and neither lets go.
The story follows two sisters, Bree (Nora-Jane Noone) and Jonna (Alexandra Park), who become trapped beneath the heavy fiberglass cover of an Olympic-sized pool just as the facility closes for a holiday weekend. What begins as an unfortunate accident quickly turns into a battle against hypothermia, rising panic, and deep-seated personal demons.
As hours pass and hope fades, long-buried tensions surface. Bree is the responsible, seemingly perfect sister with a secret. Jonna, fresh out of rehab, is impulsive and wounded, but no less determined to survive. Together, they must confront more than the suffocating water — they must confront each other.
The film cleverly builds suspense without supernatural elements or complex twists. The true horror comes from helplessness, sibling resentment, and the realization that safety can disappear in an instant. Adding to their torment is Clara, a disturbed janitor played by Diane Farr, whose decisions blur the line between victim, villain, and bystander.
12 Feet Deep isn’t about action or spectacle — it’s about psychological pressure, the kind that tightens like the pool’s cover. With strong performances and minimal sets, the film delivers an unsettling experience that taps into primal fears: drowning, confinement, and abandonment.
It reminds us that sometimes the most terrifying prisons are not built of concrete — but of water, memory, and regret.
