The Surface

I just discovered this film on Amazon Prime and saw that it had Sean Astin in it. I have liked Seans parts in every film I've seen him in so I figured I'd like this one. It's a slow paced film that mostly takes place on a boat, but the depth of the characters and the meaning behind the story carries the film through. Just a good solid film without out the bells and whistles.

I like this movie. It was simple. I think people have forgotten how to enjoy a simple movie with a simple message. It is such a breath of fresh air not to have some stupid twisted ending.

I've seen a number of this type of movie--men against each other against nature. I generally enjoy them and this one was no exception. Astin was remarkably good as Mitch, the depressed adult child of the Alzheimer's-affected mother. He is clearly ridden by guilt and sadness when he goes out on the boat for what purpose, the viewer can only guess at.

Astin could easily have carried an entire movie by himself. He can express a wide range of emotions in a believable way, although in this film he's prone to just sadness, anger, and wistful amusement. When he's paired with Mulkey, the story takes on an entirely different tone. While he was depressed and self-absorbed prior to discovering the crashed plane, Mitch begins to care about life again. Not his own, at first, but definitely Mulkey's. Mitch begins to understand that he's not just there to face his own life, but also to (as corny as it sounds) forgive himself and take his place in this changed life.

Despite what could be a very depressing subject matter, the interaction between the two men had me laughing out loud a few times. It wasn't exactly a heartwarming movie, but it left me feeling satisfied with the ending and the way in which the storylines were tied up. The only thing is, I wish we'd gotten a chance to see Mitch's choice of dog. This movie is not for anyone who wants to see "Adrift" or "Dead Calm," but is generally enjoyable for someone who thinks that tension and violence are not inexorably intertwined.

Sean Astin and Chris Mukley provide fine performances in director Gil Cates Jr. suspenseful film centered on two desperate men who have a chance meeting in the middle of Lake Michigan. Mitch (Astin) is determined to kill himself because he blames himself for his father's death in a factory accident. Kelly Enright (Mulkey) crashes his plane into the Lake while on a delivery of a backpack with $125,000 for either drugs or black market human body parts. Both men are desperately searching for hope and identity in their lives. The videography is stunning, and the writing creates a realistic give and take of hostility until each man realizes he must depend upon the other for survival. The film begins with a dream-like sequence of Mitch preparing for his trip out onto Lake Michigan (and his eventual suicide). He meticulously preps for his day, fills a bird feeder with enough seed to last several weeks, then visits his mother (who is suffering from Alzheimer's disease) in a nursing home. After making certain that everything he is leaving behind is in order, Mitch motors his father's small fishing boat out into the lake. Soon Mitch discovers the wreckage of a small plane and pulls the pilot (Kelly), who had been clinging to part of one of the wings, into his craft. The remainder of the film entails Mitch and Kelly discussing bleaker anecdotes of life that all of us experience and, often, keep to ourselves. Mitch has suffered the loss of his girlfriend through a skate boarding accident, the death of his father through the warehouse accident, and his mother to Alzheimer's. Through a chance cell phone call from the men who are awaiting Kelly's arrival with the money, Mitch is able to contact 911 and both men are rescued by the Coast Guard stationed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. By the time of the rescue both men have helped each discover that hope survives. As Kelly said to Mitch during one of Mitch's self-indulgent diatribes, "...don't do that to yourself [...] people have choices...". This is a must see Indy film. The acting is sound, the writing is crisp and honest, the directing is insightful, and the videography is stunning and haunting.

I normally love survival and man vs. nature films. I think you can break down events in these kinds of movies into several categories:

*Man vs. Craft - Troubles with the mode of transportation (a small boat in this case) *Man vs. Nature - Troubles with weather, predators, etc. *Man vs. Man - Troubles with the other survivors *Man vs. Potential Rescuers - Often not seen by potential rescuers or they can be hostile

This movie offered up very few interactions within these categories, settling instead for some average dialog.

Another big problem is that the movie failed to make you care about the characters enough to really root for their survival. Also the dialog between the two suddenly became more intimate and personal with no transition to ease the viewer along.

The dialog between the two characters covered some decent ground but was not well-written. The characters will not built out enough for you to sympathize or even fully understand their issues soon enough to cement your interest in their survival.

It's a shame because survival movies are generally a good watch.

Reasonably well filmed.

Read some Jack London to experience the genre at its peak.