I am rewatching The Little Mermaid and during the scene where prince Eric’s ship is hit by a storm, you can see some shorter shots of the sea beneath its surface and it looks pretty calm, while the surface is absolutely ravaged by the storm.
Is this an oversimplification or is this actually the case?
I’d imagine it’s somewhat oversimplified. Consider rip currents. They look calm on the surface but can be deadly and carry you a mile out to sea. It might not seem like it if you don’t have a point of reference to track and cresting waves to get above.