I watched it last night. There were a few shots where the sharks wer clearly CGI and it did detract from the movie some. But over all I liked it. Most likely, this was bio-pic about a French hero and not really made for external consumption.
Other than reading his books and watching his shows as a kid, I have not read much about JYC as a man or a husband. What I have heard was not always complimentary. He was a man of his times. The modern environmental movement didn’t start until the 1960s and the pre WWII world view of a French officer was probably very colonial, imperialist and man conquers nature. Dynamiting reefs, shooting feeding sharks and staging events for dramatic effect were not beyond the realm. He did evolve over time and to his credit when re-releasing The Silent World, he left in the portion where they were shooting the sharks, because it was what they did.
My. guess is they sugar coated it a fair amount, anyway, but still fun to see the vintage gear hear the story...