Adrift is directed by Baltasar Kormákur and stars Shailene Woodley and Sam Claflin.
Drama/Adventure/Romance. Released 2018.
Adrift tells the true story of Tami Oldham (Shailene Woodley) and Richard Sharp (Sam Claflin), a couple who venture out to sea and encounter one of the most catastrophic hurricanes in history.
Before seeing Adrift, I was mainly anticipating the likely stellar performances from both stars, seeing as I have thoroughly enjoyed watching their performances in the past, specifically Woodley's, having delivered awards-worthy (yet not recognised to be so) performances in The Fault In Our Stars, The Spectacular Now, The Descendants...
...And now, Adrift.
Due to the time of release and the overall critical reception of Adrift, I don't believe Woodley will be recognised for this work (yet again), but she is so magnetic here, and - with all due respect to the rest of the cast and crew - she carries the entire film. Her performance is so natural and it is evident that she truly lost herself in the role, even with the added pressure of portraying a real person. There are some lines given to Woodley that an actress with any less virtuosity than her would probably not be able to deliver and seem genuine, and not sound somewhat cliché. Her dramatic scenes are excellently delivered, with Woodley embodying and seemingly feeling every hardship there is at sea. I also strongly believed her loving relationship with Claflin, but his performance did not match up with the quality of Woodley's. However, this isn't a glaring issue, since Woodley had a lot more screen time and the script allowed her to do more with her performance. Claflin was very likeable in his role and his acting was stellar, but he wasn't given enough time to be fleshed out and make him a resultedly convincing character.
The narrative structure in this film seems to be detrimental in the eyes of some critics, but I believe this is entirely necessary to maximise the emotional impact of the end of the film. I personally enjoyed the two storylines of the past and present and how they eventually met up, seeing as the sequences set in the past allow the audience to emotionally invest in the characters and resultedly care more about the events happening in the present.
I enjoyed the scope and tone of the film. It felt small, but in an intimate and delicate fashion. The camerawork and cinematography is done beautifully, adding a poignancy at necessary points, and the use of colour and pathetic fallacy based on the current events further defines the tone, and I applaud Kormákur for grounding the film in this way.
I also want to commend Hauschka for composing this score, because it really does add a lot to both the intensity and intimacy of the film.
However, although nothing in Adrift is done significantly poorly, nothing - with the exception of Woodley's performance - is done exceptionally, since it all feels very safe, even whilst every aspect of the film is, at worst, adequate.
Adrift makes for a solid and enjoyable viewing experience, and I can't imagine anyone would come out of this film with a strong disliking for it, because there isn't really anything to justify that kind of strong opinion.
I would recommend this to anyone - it's intimate, touching and visually stunning.
Enjoy if you haven't already :)
...And now, Adrift.
Due to the time of release and the overall critical reception of Adrift, I don't believe Woodley will be recognised for this work (yet again), but she is so magnetic here, and - with all due respect to the rest of the cast and crew - she carries the entire film. Her performance is so natural and it is evident that she truly lost herself in the role, even with the added pressure of portraying a real person. There are some lines given to Woodley that an actress with any less virtuosity than her would probably not be able to deliver and seem genuine, and not sound somewhat cliché. Her dramatic scenes are excellently delivered, with Woodley embodying and seemingly feeling every hardship there is at sea. I also strongly believed her loving relationship with Claflin, but his performance did not match up with the quality of Woodley's. However, this isn't a glaring issue, since Woodley had a lot more screen time and the script allowed her to do more with her performance. Claflin was very likeable in his role and his acting was stellar, but he wasn't given enough time to be fleshed out and make him a resultedly convincing character.
The narrative structure in this film seems to be detrimental in the eyes of some critics, but I believe this is entirely necessary to maximise the emotional impact of the end of the film. I personally enjoyed the two storylines of the past and present and how they eventually met up, seeing as the sequences set in the past allow the audience to emotionally invest in the characters and resultedly care more about the events happening in the present.
I enjoyed the scope and tone of the film. It felt small, but in an intimate and delicate fashion. The camerawork and cinematography is done beautifully, adding a poignancy at necessary points, and the use of colour and pathetic fallacy based on the current events further defines the tone, and I applaud Kormákur for grounding the film in this way.
I also want to commend Hauschka for composing this score, because it really does add a lot to both the intensity and intimacy of the film.
However, although nothing in Adrift is done significantly poorly, nothing - with the exception of Woodley's performance - is done exceptionally, since it all feels very safe, even whilst every aspect of the film is, at worst, adequate.
Adrift makes for a solid and enjoyable viewing experience, and I can't imagine anyone would come out of this film with a strong disliking for it, because there isn't really anything to justify that kind of strong opinion.
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A poignant and well executed story of survival
with a spectacular leading performance
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I would recommend this to anyone - it's intimate, touching and visually stunning.
Enjoy if you haven't already :)
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