The Green Sea

I went in with zero expectations and found this movie to be surprisingly impactful.

The actors were very well cast, and each portrays their character with quality. Katherine Isabelle plays the unpredictable, traumatised Simone with the genuine feel of lurching from one extreme to the next in search of something to take her away from her own memories. Hazel Doupe is an excellent stand offish, quiet kid, and is able to say much with visual cues, in comparison to the rants and outbursts of her co-star.

Of particular note is the character Justin, played by Dermot Ward, who seems to have a sincere desire to help. His interactions and attempts to assist Simone in opening up seem heartfelt and genuine. I'm surprised I've not seen more of this actor.

I was impressed with this movie overall. The house seemed dark and cold. The relationships between Simone and the Kid seem strained, whilst between Simone and Justin it seems awkward and frustrating. The Director definitely did well to convey the mistrust and fear of intimacy.

I would definitely recommend this movie.

Such a deep story, I totally love it The acting is so good too Everything was perfect about it and Katharine's acting was perfect as usual.

Captures the atmosphere of the rather bleak coast of Ireland setting the scene for a thoughtful unfolding exploration of grief via a fairly common MacGuffin which is guessable early on but that doesn't distract too much (otherwise maybe a 10) - but the two leads carry it off very well with sympathy and good chemistry between them. Dramatic sequences and flashbacks are not over the top, bloody but not gory. The metaphorical motif is good and is carried through well. A very good sound track reinforces the spooky aspects, again without being over the top. All in all much better than many movies in a similar vein.

A fine Irish genre/indie film. Somewhat customary for Irish genre work, the film has a very solid dramatic foundation with slimmer genre elements layered on top. It probably wouldn't be too hard to frame this as a full-on drama simply by tinkering with the styling, instead director Randal Plunkett goes for a darker, more mysterious approach and adds minor mystery and horror touches to his first full-length feature. The result is a rather stylish affair that heralds a promising career.

The film revolves around Simone, a bitter woman who lives alone in the countryside. She drinks a lot, listens to metal and spends her time trying to write her second novel. One night, driving home wasted, she hits a young girl on the side of the road. Reluctantly, she loads her into her car and lets her spend the night. The girl won't reveal where she's from and even though Simone isn't looking for company, she can't just kick her to the curb.

The Green Sea is a film that thrives on atmosphere. The soundtrack and soundscapes in particular stand out. Not even so much the metal tracks, which are more incidental and little more than background noise, but the haunting melodies and distorted rumbles that give the film a dense mood. Coupled with a grim and desaturated color palette, a lingering camera and sharply edited segments that drive up the tension, it makes for an impressively stylized film.

Plunkett does well to keep the mystery intact while revealing just enough to give the necessary context to the plot. The performances are solid, and the finale is memorable. The Green Sea loses a tiny bit of steam in the middle part, I guess a runtime closer to 90 minutes would've fitted the film a little better, other than that I had no real complaints about this one. I'm already looking forward to seeing what Plunkett will come up with next.

I wasn't expecting this to be as good as it was. I am not a big fan of films on Prime or Netflix and so settled down to be mildly entertained. I had never seen a film by Randal P before apart from a Zombie movie on Youtube. Later I discovered this is his first feature film and that's why. I have to say I thought the cinematography in the film was exquisite. I enjoyed the pace and the characters and was gripped throughout. Would highly recommend. Well done to Randal on his 1st film and looking forward to the next one.