What happens when a group of young adults on a hedonistic Mexican vacation get mixed up with a drug cartel under the guise of a once in a lifetime shark diving excursion? A wild, frenzied experience of adrenaline and fear!

Tatiana and her best friend are vacationing with their boyfriends, along with Tatiana’s gambling-addicted brother, Kyle. When Tatiana’s little brother skips a night of drinking and dancing, then shows up with a suspiciously amazing opportunity for the next day, the group barely questions where it came from. With the exception of his overprotective sister, it’s a chance of a lifetime…so why not, right? What could possibly go wrong?

Kyle’s debts and talent for trouble catch up with him when he squares off against cartel kingpin Mr. Burns, played with deliciously sinister flair by Antonio Banderas. Cornered and out of options, he accepts a boat trip for himself and his entourage, complete with drinks, food, and a few wickedly close encounters with the local sharks. Who would pass up this fantastic (and FREE) excursion?

Captain Logan, a somewhat shady figure played brilliantly by Timothy V. Murphy, welcomes the group aboard, before casually mentioning that two more passengers will be joining them: juicehead goons Garrison and Martin. Once again, the friends barely second-guess their presence before setting sail with a crash course in “Jaws” observation. “Sharks aren’t blood thirsty animals, but they ARE apex predators.”

That warning lingers after the boys return from a brief scare during their dive and agree not to tell the women about their reckless stunt. But Above & Below has more than one predator lurking, with plenty of danger still ahead. Martin, a gritty wild card played by Louis Mandylor, has little patience for the two debutante beauties and makes them uneasy with salacious stares and crude remarks. The women are almost relieved to climb into the metal cage and escape Martin’s sleaziness. Once they are lowered into the water, the action spirals out of control as Burns makes a grand entrance and the unsuspecting passengers discover a bag packed with drugs.

Bodies drop into the water amid floating chum, drawing sharks toward the frantic women trapped below, while chaos ignites above after Burns’ prized possession goes overboard as well. As the mayhem spins further out of control, Tatiana suddenly finds an almost implausible calm to survive and help save the others, which is very unconvincing…but I’ll let that slide.

Above and below the surface, the predators are indiscriminate, unhinged, and primal, leaving survival to feel like a gamble between two brutal ends: death below by ravenous great whites or death above at the hands of a ruthless drug-smuggling overlord. Surrounded by deadly villains, none commands the screen quite like Antonio Banderas’ Burns, whose devilish panache and suave menace reign supreme. I’d dive into shark-infested waters to retrieve a Louis Vuitton bag for him any day.