The Sea (2013)

The story of a man who returns to the sea where he spent his childhood summers in search of peace following the death of his wife.

Director:

Stephen Brown

Writers:

John Banville (novel), John Banville (screenplay)

Stars:

Ciarán Hinds, Sinéad Cusack, Joe Gallagher

1 win & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ciarán Hinds	...	Max Morden
Sinéad Cusack	...	Anna Morden
Joe Gallagher	...	Consultant
Karen Scully	...	Nurse
Ruth Bradley	...	Claire
Charlotte Rampling	...	Miss Vavasour
Natascha McElhone	...	Connie Grace
Rufus Sewell	...	Carlo Grace
Matthew Dillon	...	Young Max
Karl Johnson	...	Blunden
Bonnie Wright	...	Rose
Missy Keating	...	Chloe Grace
Padhraig Parkinson	...	Myles Grace
Paul McCloskey	...	Barman (as Fred Paul McCloskey)
Amy Molloy	...	Shopgirl - Sadie

Storyline

The story of a man who returns to the sea where he spent his childhood summers in search of peace following the death of his wife.

---

Plot Keywords:

death | screenplay adapted by author | drown | child minder | first kiss | 

---

Genres:

Drama

---

Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Country:

Ireland UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

18 April 2014 (Ireland)

Also Known As:

El mar, de John Banville

Filming Locations:

County Wexford, Ireland

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$33,735

Company Credits

Production Co:

Independent, Samson Films, Quicksilver Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

The novel of the same title by John Banville, which the film is based on, won the Booker Prize in 2005.

---

Quotes

[first lines]
Anna Morden: Doctor, is it the death sentence? Or do I get life?

User Reviews

Stagnant Waters. ♦ Grade D-

Man Booker Prize-winning novels are too hard to adapt, and except for a few hits like Schindler's List (1993) and Life of Pi (2012), all adaptations are either dull or totally a mess. This tragic drama is one such non-electrifying film.

Max Morden (Ciarán Hinds) is an aged art historian who has come back to the seaside place where he used to spend his vacations as a child. He is currently grieving the loss of a loved one and is also hoping to find peace from a childhood incident which made him the way he is now. The story follows Morden's life as flashbacks of his time with his newfound friends, a twin siblings, flip flop between the episodes of present tense.

Hinds is the only aspect of the film which is appealing. The supporting characters are too abrupt in their approach, making the film look like it was conceived for people who have already read the book. Even for those who have, the lackluster, non-linear screenplay will induce ennui, just enough to put them to sleep if they are not startled by the sudden, repetitive crescendos towards the end. Banville clearly fails as a scriptwriter, trying to correct some of his novel's mistakes by adding extra salt to the already salty water. Brown's direction is also at fault, as the cast often look puzzled in their own characters' skins. The young actor who plays a young Morden is terrible.

The Sea is an average book exploring loss and grief and how a man tries and miserably fails to fix up his life post the events. The film is a lot less convincing, mostly because the sliding sequences just do not bring about any point that the author might have originally tried to convey. Read the book and move on to Kiran Desai's "The Inheritance of Loss".

BOTTOM LINE: Stephen Brown's "The Sea" is a lowbrow adaptation of a lowbrow fiction which can be best understood by reading its original source. Wait for TV premiere.

Can be watched with a typical Indian family? NO