Hey there, welcome back to another installment of our yearlong Review Stew! This week we’re heading to Maryland where in addition to crab cakes and football, they know how to celebrate the Fourth of July. Though what they don’t know is what is lurking in… The Bay (2012).
Title: The Bay
Director: Barry Levinson
Released: September 13, 2012 (Canada)
Runtime: 1 hour 24 minutes
Available to stream on: Tubi
We open with clips of news stories discussing ecological disasters. Fish dying in large numbers, birds dying and literally falling from the sky, all with one thing in common…scientists can’t determine why it keeps happening.
The story that we see, that hasn’t been made public until now, takes place in Claridge, Maryland. Local reporter Donna Thompson (Kether Donohue) is covering the town’s Fourth of July celebrations and events.
During the crab eating contest, the contests suddenly become violently ill. If that wasn’t bad enough, the same people also appear to have lesions as well. As these people begin to flood the local hospital, Dr. Abrams (Stephen Kunken) reaches out to the CDC and is told not to worry as it’s more than likely just a viral outbreak.
However, things escalate rather quickly as residents of Claridge begin dropping dead at an alarming rate. Residents who aren’t dropping dead begin reporting an additional side effect, they feel a bug crawling around inside of them.
What exactly is happening in the waters of the Chesapeake Bay?
Going into The Bay (2012), I was aware that it was a horror movie, what I didn’t know is that it was a found-footage horror. Usually, for me anyways, there’s no middle ground with found-footage horror. It’s either really good or you’re really glad that it’s over…until now.
One thing that I can appreciate is that this isn’t told in the usual found-footage style. Here we get clips of news casts, police bodycam/dashcam footage, FaceTime calls, all blended together to tell the story. This all makes sense as we’re sort of just sorting through all of the footage that was confiscated by the government.
At least, it makes sense until you think about it. While not impossible or unheard of, it is, at minimum, very unlikely that a rookie reporter such as Donna would be the first to get her hands on what was previously unseen and confiscated by the government.
While there are elements of both body and creature horror present, this isn’t your typical horror film. Man’s actions have created the issues that are impacting the town, that’s the horror behind it all in The Bay (2012).
Does it work as a horror film? Sort of. Though, if you view it as an eco-thriller it’s slightly more enjoyable.
Well, what say you?
If you’ve seen The Bay (2012), leave a comment below or reach out on Bluesky telling me your thoughts!
As always, you can follow me over on Letterboxd to see what else I’ve been watching lately.