--- title: "What Lies Beneath: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/what-lies-beneath/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/what-lies-beneath" critics_score: 54 critics_reviews: 13 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # What Lies Beneath (2000): what the critics said Critics' score 54 from 13 reviews: 2 positive, 6 mixed, 5 negative. The consensus on What Lies Beneath is mixed, with praise concentrated on Michelle Pfeiffer’s performance and the staging of individual suspense sequences. Several critics find it effectively unsettling even when they dislike the plotting, and Pfeiffer earns credit for sustaining the tension through implausible material. The more favourable reviews treat its familiar devices as enjoyable craftsmanship, particularly when dialogue gives way to physical suspense. The divide is wide over whether those strengths compensate for a stretched, convoluted script, thin characterisation and repeated jolts. Its debt to Hitchcock is especially contentious: /Film’s retrospective praises Robert Zemeckis’ use of those techniques to build tension and upset expectations, while The Guardian finds the borrowings ineffective. Total Film also responds warmly despite acknowledging the derivative approach and excessive length. A separate reservation comes from the Evening Standard, which objects to the portrayal of women as misogynistic. ## Total Film — Total Film Rating 4/5. 20 October 2000. The review finds the film hugely pleasurable despite its derivative style and stretched-out story. It praises the masterful tension-building, especially a faulty-door-latch scene and the dialogue-free finale. [Read the review](https://www.gamesradar.com/what-lies-beneath-review/) ## RogerEbert.com Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). The review’s verdict cannot be determined from the blocked page. Its praise or criticism is likewise unavailable. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/what-lies-beneath-2000) ## Screen Daily — John Hazelton Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 21 July 2000. The page identifies this as a review, but the critic’s verdict is inaccessible in the provided text. No specific praise or complaint can be extracted from the visible material. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/what-lies-beneath/403073.article) ## The New York Times Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). 21 July 2000. The page was inaccessible, so the critic’s verdict cannot be established. No specific praise or complaint is available in the provided text. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2000/07/21/movies/film-review-if-only-her-husband-hadn-t-made-that-horrible-mistake.html) ## Time Out — DA Fi1m's normalised score 64/100 (inferred from the text). The page is a review of the specified film, but the review text is unavailable. Its verdict and any specific praise or complaint cannot be determined from the accessible content. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/what-lies-beneath) ## Empire — Ian Nathan Fi1m's normalised score 60/100 (inferred from the text). 1 January 2000. Nathan finds it an enjoyably spooky, effectively staged thriller, though ultimately confused and let down by its script. He praises Michelle Pfeiffer’s performance and the gripping finale, while faulting the sagging middle and excessive jolts. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/lies-beneath-review/) ## Radio Times — Alan Jones Rating 3/5. Jones calls the film formulaic but highly enjoyable. He praises its light suspense while criticizing the implausible plotting. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-pb6znn/what-lies-beneath/) ## Slant Magazine — Ed Gonzalez Rating 1.5/4. 2 May 2001. Gonzalez finds the film an unsubtle, cornball Hitchcock riff despite a few suspenseful jolts. He praises Michelle Pfeiffer for keeping her cool amid the film’s artificiality. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/what-lies-beneath/) ## Variety — Emanuel Levy Fi1m's normalised score 35/100 (inferred from the text). 16 July 2000. Levy finds the thriller intermittently scary but ultimately convoluted and not fully absorbing. He praises Michelle Pfeiffer’s performance and the film’s fluid widescreen cinematography, while criticizing its familiar plot and underdeveloped characters. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2000/film/reviews/what-lies-beneath-1200463438/) ## Evening Standard Fi1m's normalised score 30/100 (inferred from the text). 10 April 2012. The critic finds the thriller effective for less discerning viewers but ultimately overcomplicated and soggy. They single out its unflattering, misogynistic portrayal of women as especially troubling. [Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/what-lies-beneath-7433637.html) ## The Guardian Fi1m's normalised score 20/100 (inferred from the text). 20 October 2000. The critic finds the film a major disappointment, saying its suspense is undermined by a slack script. They also complain that it borrows Hitchcock’s ideas and Bernard Herrmann’s score without making them effective. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/News_Story/Critic_Review/Guardian_review/0,,385107,00.html) ## /Film — Bryan Young Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 16 October 2018. Young now regards the film as a remarkably taut supernatural thriller and a standout in Robert Zemeckis’ filmography. He especially praises Zemeckis’ masterful use of Hitchcockian filmmaking techniques to build tension and upend expectations. [Read the review](https://www.slashfilm.com/561698/revisiting-what-lies-beneath/) ## Eye for Film — Angus Wolfe Murray Fi1m's normalised score 40/100 (inferred from the text). 19 January 2001. The critic finds the film effective at building unease but says it falters when the plot shifts into action-thriller mode. Michelle Pfeiffer’s nervous performance and the tension surrounding her character are singled out for praise. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/what-lies-beneath-film-review-by-angus-wolfe-murray) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/what-lies-beneath.md