Aahana Swrup
‘No Way Up’ is a horror-survival film that finds the protagonists at the bottom of a shark-infested ocean. A plane bound for Cabo harbors a variety of passengers, including Ava, her friends, and a pair of elderly grandparents with their young granddaughter, Rosa. However, the exciting trip soon turns sour when a mid-flight accident sends the vessel crashing straight into the Pacific Ocean. Consequently, Ava and the handful of survivors who somehow endured the crash’s damage find themselves in an unimaginable fight for survival as killer sharks begin circling their drowning aircraft.
Claudio Fäh’s unique take on a shark story charts a riveting path as the narrative backs its characters into an impossible corner. Still, Ava and her fellow survivors refuse to surrender to their demise and fight to reach the water’s surface until their last breaths. SPOILERS AHEAD!
No Way Up Plot Synopsis
Ava and her father, the local Governor, have a knack for excessive security measures. For the same reason, as the college student shows up at the airport to embark on a fun vacation with her boyfriend, Jed, and his friend, Kyle, her ex-Navy SEAL bodyguard, Brandon, tags along with her. Yet, even Brandon can see the absurd picture his addition makes. He concedes once he realizes that Ava—who has been on edge ever since her mother’s untimely death, caused by a preventable accident—truly wants him here. Meanwhile, a family—made up of two grandparents and one 10-year-old Rosa—prepare for their own vacation to Cabo.
Initially, things run smoothly enough as the flight takes off. Even so, Ava can’t help but remain on edge, unable to shake off a bad feeling. In time, her premonition comes true as a bird accidentally flies into one of the plane’s engines. Initially, the cabin crew attempts to assuage the passenger’s worries, insisting everything is under control. Nonetheless, things take a drastic turn soon enough. As the engine goes up in flames, it creates a hole in the side of the plane. Many of the passengers who aren’t sucked out into the air end up dying by shrapnel. Others drown to their deaths as the plane dives into the Pacific Ocean.
Yet, Ava and her friends—sitting in the back of the plane survived the crash. Fortunately, Brandon also survives and manages to drag out a few other survivors—Rosa and her Nana. One of the flight attendants, Danilo, also endures the crash. The group huddles together in the back of the plane, where enough of an air pocket has formed to ensure an hour or two of breathable air. In this time of intense crisis, Brandon takes charge and makes a plan to wait for help. Nonetheless, as he attempts to secure an oxygen tank to ensure they don’t run out of air, he encounters the biggest detrimental to their survival: sharks.
Consequently, while Brandon manages to buy Ava and the others some more time through the oxygen tank, he becomes fish food in the end. In the meantime, a rescue team circles the water from a chopper in the air. Nevertheless, the survivors find themselves in an even bigger time crunch as the plane slides off the rocks, submerging deeper into the ocean. Thus, Ava and the others realize they have to come up with a proactive solution quickly. For a moment, their hopes are kindled when they spot the rescue scuba divers find the wreckage. Yet, their relief is short-lived as the sharks devour the divers. In the aftermath, Ava and Jed attempt to retract the closer diver’s oxygen tanks. However, Jed’s encounter with the shark leaves him with a near-fatal injury that soon kills him.
No Way Up Ending: Do The Survivors Make it Out of The Plane?
Despite the impossible situation that Ava and the other survivors find themselves in, as their plan hinges on an ocean rock, hope remains for their escape. Thanks to Brandon’s can-do attitude and the persistent search pirates Ava’s father deploys for her, the chances of the group holding out for long enough to be found remain high. Nonetheless, another addition to their predicament—of the shark variety—seems to seal their fates. While underwater, the group needs to find ways to ensure their oxygen levels last them long enough. However, this means they have foray out of their air pocket and toward the hole in the plane, where the diver met his end. This raises the problem of the sharks waiting with bated breath to make prey out of Ava and the others.
Fortunately enough, there is some scuba gear in the plane’s luggage hatch that Danilo is able to access. As such, Ava, Kyle, Danilo, and Rosa don the wetsuits to help them combat the ocean’s cold. On her part, Nana forgoes gear for herself to ensure her granddaughter can be safe. Afterward, the group prepares to swim out toward the hole at the side of the plane. They plan to take the divers oxygen tanks and use them while swimming to the surface. As the plane’s ceiling begins succumbing to the ocean’s water pressure and their precarious hold on the rock further slips, it becomes evident that they must immediately evacuate the plane.
Nana, who always knew she wouldn’t be able to make it out without any gear despite her swimming skills, embraces her fate. She believes that going out with the group will only slow them down because they’ll try to prioritize her safety. However, the woman only cares about her granddaughter’s survival. On the other hand, Kyle remains mortally scared of the plan due to a childhood traumatic near-death accident wherein he almost drowned. For the same reason, as Ava and the others leave the air pocket, Kyle ends up backtracking due to his fear, which ultimately makes him an easy target for the sharks. In the end, Danilo and Rosa manage to make it out alive and escape the plane with the diver’s tank, swimming up to the source. Nevertheless, a shark swims by the opening before Ava can make her own escape.
Does Ava Survive?
After Brandon’s death, Ava ends up becoming the de facto leader of the small group of survivors. Even though she has been held back by fear previously in her life, she is able to think clearly and make decisions regardless of how impossible things may seem. Her optimism remains her strongest weapon. Yet, in the end, she ends up facing her doom alone. As the shark cuts off her escape from the plane’s hull, Ava has to stay calm and collected to ensure the predator doesn’t notice her. Afterward, she realizes that she can’t escape through the side of the ship as the vessel slips further underwater.
As a result, Ava has no choice but to swim up to the plane’s front and escape from there. As the craft tips off the rock and dives into the water, she has to swim against the increasing pressure to keep herself from succumbing to the ocean’s depth. Unlike Danilo and Rosa, she also doesn’t have an oxygen tank. Consequently, even after Ava escapes the plane, her chances of survival seem low. In the end, the shortage of oxygen catches up to her body, and she’s forced to go limp and stop fighting for her life. This helps her body float up to the surface, thanks to the life jacket she is wearing. Thus, her body floats up to the ocean’s surface, allowing the rescue team to spot and scoop her up from the dreadful water.
Why Does Rosa Let Go Of Mr. Tibbs?
As the story concludes, it finds Ava, Danilo, and Rosa—the only remaining survivors—on a chopper, back to safety. Before Ava was rescued, she spotted Rosa’s soft toy—Mr. Tibbs—in the water and brought it back for her. Before they boarded the plane earlier, Rosa had lost her teddy bear, which aggravated her. Mr. Tibbs is a source of comfort and safety for the kid, allowing her to remain calm in even the most adverse situations. Back at the airport, Ava had found Mr. Tibbs for Rosa, establishing the kid’s trust in her.
However, when Ava brings Mr. Tibbs back to Rosa now, the kid decides to let him go. Mr. Tibbs has been incredibly significant to the kid, acting as her safety blanket. Nonetheless, after surviving such a traumatic experience, Rosa has been intrinsically changed. For the same reason, she realizes that her grandparents—who met their ends in the ocean—might need Mr. Tibbs’ protection more than her. As such, she drops the toy back into the ocean—symbolizing the growth of her character and the conclusion of her story.
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