Is Mako Based on True Story? Shark Horror Movie on Netflix Ending Explained

The thriller movie Mako is based on and inspired by a true story that happened in 1991 with the Salem Express ship crew.

The film is not much related to the shark element but is based on the tragic accident that happened in the Red Sea where the ship, Salem Express sank and more than 400 people were killed and about 200 people were rescued. 

Salem Express was a ship first known as Fred Scamaroni which was made in June 1965 in France. In 1966 June the ship had its first sail on the route of Marseille to Ajaccio after there was a fire in the engine room which caused a delay. After it was sold it was renamed Salem Express. 

The last sail of the ship captained by Hassan Maro was a 450-mile journey of about 36 hours and was scheduled to drop around 400 passengers in Safaga and then resume to Suez. The plan was to the standard route however, there had been a delay in Saudi Arabia because of a mechanical fault. On December 14, 1991, at 11:13, the ship sank completely in around 20 minutes after striking a reef and sharp rocks less than ten miles offshore.

Most of the passengers on the ship were poorly paid Egyptian laborers who were traveling home for the holidays, tourists, and some of them were returning to Mecca from a pilgrimage. The storm delayed the rescue efforts until the next day of the sinking of the ship. Most of the bodies of the victims still lie at the bottom of the sea. 

In the film, the documentary crew goes out to the shipwreck where the Salem Express sank to look at the shipwreck. A part of the documentary is to look at the tomb raid that took place since the ship sank. 

The shipwreck is actually a popular tourist destination for divers in reality. However, some divers look around, open suitcases, and take the souvenirs. Since there are many bodies there even now, it is a tomb and some divers do not show respect to the place. 

The movie Mako ends after Rana Bahfat played by Basma is the only one to survive in her crew in the shark attack. 

As the divers dive in and the crew swims toward the vessel and they see an amazing view. However, a shark attacks Murad and rips him into shreds. It brings a sense of panic and everyone makes a desperate attempt to return. The crew started to slip into madness as they have to hide in the different parts of the sunken ship. The first person to turn is Zeyad who tries to kill his own brother by unhooking his oxygen tank. However, his attempt failed. 

Rana comes to realize that the only way to get away from this madness is to kill the shark for that he had to lure it by spilling her blood. It is just a hallucination as she is under narcosis in reality. Graham on the other hand is exploring as if nothing happened as she was on the ship when it was sinking.

Her father saved her and sacrificed his own life. She was also living with the guilt of killing her mother. She locked her mother who was sleeping to protect her but later on was unable to open the doors as the ship was flooded with water.

As she was filled with guilt for her mother all her life it was her plan all along to come to the ship and die with her deceased family. Everything she said about the divers was a lie so that Rana would take on the project. She then is eaten by the shark. 

Asia, Taimur, Zeyad, and Rana reunite and they plan to share the extra tank. Zeyad and Taimur lose their minds and fight over the tank. Taimur killed Khaled for his tank by throwing him outside the sink to be eaten by the shark. Khaled who had saved Zayed from murdering his own brother later turned into killing his friend just to save his own skin. 

As the fight happens both of them is accidentally killed. Soon all of them are killed one by one except Rana and she is the only one to survive the shark attack.  

The movie comes to an end when Rana is receiving an award and appreciation for The Sinking Ship that she was always wanted for her documentaries. However, this time she is not that eager and is hesitant to accept the award as her greed and hunger for recognition had cost the death of so many people.

She also came to the realization that success and fame meant nothing if there was no one to celebrate or share them with. Asia, Zeyad, Murad, Taimur, and Sherif were not killed by the sharks but actually by the greed and ambition that Rana had to become the best and get the appreciation as well as recognition she had been longing for. 

The trailer of the movie Mako starts with the sunken ship surrounded by sharks.

Rana and her crew arrive at the location to go diving and they plan about when to dive and other activities. Rana and crew with Murad, their guide dive into the sea to be met by sharks. They all go into the sunken ship’s corners to hide from the sharks. The scene is filled with chaos as they try to survive the sharks.

The new addition to Netflix, Mako is a shark movie that is labeled under drama and thriller and even has a gore warning. However, it is not much about the shark in the movie and is mostly based on personal drama. 

According to Heaven of Horror, the main characters do not even head out in the movie’s first act. This movie opened up with a story that was inspired by the 2017 Oscars. 30 minutes of the 96 minutes movie is not in the sea only after the 30 minutes timeline does the cast get into the water.  

As the sharks are in the sea we can only see a glimpse of them in the first act which is essentially avoidable and is not related to the second half. The production quality of Mako is said to be quite impressive.

The effects of the sharks are also amazingly portrayed. The parts of the film with the sharks were mostly of actual shark footage as well as a few special effects. The special effect is not too much that it is annoying but a little less to be called a shark movie.