"Quicksand" puts characters through the wringer but can't make us care enough

Quicksand (2023)

It’s hard not to be a sucker for a minimalist “stuck” survival thriller. The vicarious sensation of being trapped in a confined location with characters in a life-or-death situation is always enthralling for a high-concept nail-biter. Well, director Andres Beltran’s “Quicksand” is proficiently made and puts us through the wringer on a few occasions, but it hasn’t really achieved its goal if we’re rooting more for the quicksand. 

Doctor-turned-mother Sofia (Carolina Gaitan) and husband Josh (Peter Sarsgaard lookalike Allan Hawco) are in Bogotá, Colombia for her work conference. They're on the brink of divorce but go through with the trip anyway. Taking advantage of being in Colombia, they go hiking in the rainforest. On their way to their car, they try fending off an armed man breaking into their car. To throw the man off, they go running into the forbidden part of the forest, Las Arenas, but Sofia sinks down into a patch of thick mud like quicksand. Josh jumps in to save her, and they’re both stuck to their necks down. Who needs couples therapy?

Carolina Gaitan and Allan Hawco do effectively sell being stuck in heavy mud, although it seems like their characters give up too easily after a few smart attempts. Then again, if any of us watching were in the same situation, we’d probably eat our words. The “what would you do?” part of the premise is sufficient and keeps the viewer involved, but the actual answer to that question might be, “More than these two.” Dramatically, there should only be so much that can be done with two people stuck in quicksand. The characters who happen to be stuck have a lot to unpack with what’s been wrong with their marriage; one of them has taken up drinking again, but that will only come up because they bring out a bottle of vodka to deter a bunch of fire ants. Then there’s the whole conversation about one of them sacrificing their career for having a family. There’s just not nearly enough rooting interest in Sofia and Josh, so that leaves the stakes a bit wanting. 

For some reason, Matt Pitts’ script makes Sofia the colder, more insufferable party, and the contrivances existing outside of Sofia and Josh’s densely muddy predicament also slacken the suspense. To his credit, director Beltran does keep things moving along at enough of a clip to not get overly repetitive. Spurts of tension as Sofia and Josh battle the elements of the rainforest, like an encounter with a venomous snake, are easily the highlights, complete with slithering POV shots. “Quicksand” isn’t a bad schlockfest, but if we don’t care much about the mice, then who cares if the cat swallows them?

Grade: C +

Shudder is releasing “Quicksand” (85 min.) to stream on July 14, 2023.