Submergence

The movie is a bit slow and there's some scenes it could do without, but ultimately it is a good movie!

It tells a beautiful story about love, loss, and hope; and if you're a James or Alicia fan it is definitely worth watching. Their performances are amazing and captivating, and you can feel the chemistry.

James More (James McAvoy) is a secret agent who goes on a mission to Somalia in order to stop terrorist action but becomes hostage of al-Qaeda instead.

Danielle Flinders (Alicia Vikander) is a bio-mathematician who must carry out an equally dangerous task by diving in the utmost depths of the ocean to collect samples that could lead to groundbreaking discoveries regarding life.

Long flashbacks show how they met each other just before they embarked on their separate journeys and got involved in a romance that is over before it begins, as it turns into a long distance relationship, where the two partners have no way of reaching out to each other. The memory of their time together makes the feeling of isolation they experience during the hard times they are facing even stronger.

The most engaging part of the movie is undoubtedly the flashbacks. Two charismatic leads that form a real bond, not necessarily because of their chemistry, but mostly because they have the chance to express their philosophies by talking about some big social issues (such as the environment, terrorism, or what is the role of the individual against those problems) or personal matters (such as the meaning of life and the fear of death). The gorgeous scenery is a nice touch as well.

On the other hand, both the terrorist and the underwater storyline leave a lot to be desired. There's not much going on in either of them, James is dragged around to various places and almost gets killed each time, while Danielle waits for his call and wonders if he left her.

I watched it at Göteborg film festival som days ago. I really wanted to like this but its just didnt click for me.

The actors fail to sell the love story, they dont connect on the screen and that technobabble from Alicia Vikanders character doesnt make it better.

Two parallell stories at once. For this to work the love story need to be sold, but it just doesnt work. I dont belive it when the main characters get outburst, the reaction feels to theatric and it becomes a make belive reaction for show.

To really make the terrorist look bad and evil they put in things that just oversell the evilness of the terrorist. Yes I get it, they are the badguys but it becomes a bit to much.

Sorry. I really wanted to enjoy this but it didnt work for me.

Seriously, this movie ended without any destination being reached. It set it up quite well, but there was no point, no conclusion, no deep reveal, no destination traveled to, I really enjoyed the scenery and some of the dialog, it was like a class on marine biology, and some average concepts on life, but then it just left it there, nothing...... Bit of a waste of the journey if you either don't have anything to say or you don't know how to convey it.

This movie could have worked, and in some ways it really does. Though some people don't agree, I found the chemistry between Vikander and McAvoy to be good and very believable.

What wasn't at all believable was the script. Oh looordy, lord, there's some bad lines in there. Everything drowned in pointless talks about the ocean and suuuure it's an analogy and all, but yeezus give it a rest, will ya? The story isn't really there. It could have been an epic love story, but it's not - though that's not the actor's fault. Vikander and McAvoy give it everything they have to deliver those at times painful lines.

If you love everything else Vikander has done, you'll probably like this one as well. The male gaze is all over her, and it truly works.

The cinematography for this film is absolutely spectacular and almost worth the time just because of that (almost).