Directed by:
Luc BessonCinematography:
Carlo VariniCast:
Rosanna Arquette, Jean-Marc Barr, Jean Reno, Paul Shenar, Sergio Castellitto, Jean Bouise, Griffin Dunne, Valentina Vargas, Eric Do, Luc Besson, Paul Herman (more)VOD (1)
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Jacques (Jean-Marc Barr) and his friendly rival Enzo (Jean Reno) are considered masters of free-diving and have made a career out of this one-of-a-kind competition. Jacques feels an unusual bond with the sea and Enzo is in it for the sheer danger involved. A new dimension of their lifelong rivalry is generated by the beautiful Johana (Rosanna Arquette) who leaves her career in New York to accompany the two men on the international diving circuit. Beautiful underwater cinematography and a stunning score enrich Besson's celebrated English-language debut. (StudioCanal UK)
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Reviews (11)
It's interesting to follow the journey of a filmmaker who was considered a phenomenon in the 1980s and nowadays no one is too sure whether the trust placed in him was a disappointment or just exaggerated expectations. Be that as it may, it's now a piece of history and the French touch of Besson is not nearly as engaging as it once was. However, in hindsight, it's quite interesting to watch then-star Rosanna Arquette in a very natural role (remember those sassy, unattractive girls of hers?), Jean-Marc Barr (who I otherwise only see in von Trier projects), and Reno, who I never know what to think of (are those poses of his still cool today)?
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Great idea. Very interesting execution. What about the result? It’s very hard to express, I had a hard time even with the rating in this case. Besson has a very distinctive style, he can turn an intimate human story into a gripping and compelling spectacle, as he did in Leon or La Femme Nikita. But this one is a completely different film and it will depend a lot on the nature and the tolerance of the viewer. Everyone will probably react differently to a story about the rivalry between two old friends, which is kept at a very slow pace throughout, lacks any special effects and plays on emotions. But Besson put his whole filmmaking heart into it, and that had an impact on the result, with an unforgettable ending that is a beautiful signature over this small but at the same time huge film.
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I like movies that look like their storyboards, I like Cinéma du look, I like the sea and Jean Reno. By contrast, however, I find sports in general to be eminently moronic performances, and watching overgrown kids measure their depths then makes it impossible to accept this great, fatal, fateful plane rising above the rules of civilization.
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This avid diver and amateur oceanologist made himself and me happy. His film revels in the sun, in various shades of blue, and makes you want to put on a swimsuit and jump into the sea. And even though the plot itself is not very optimistic, it breathes comfort and Besson's love for the sea. And Eric Serra? He’s superb here! He applied his penchant for synthetic sounds, which he transformed into ambient surfaces that are beautiful to listen to. I own the soundtrack, it's a very relaxing album, totally different from his sound cacophony in The Fifth Element.
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I was a bit surprised by how long the film is, and I almost feel that if it were shortened by an hour, the viewer wouldn't actually miss out on anything significant, although this way viewers managed to connect with the characters and understand what happened at the end and what it meant for the main character. But it is the finale that shows the beauty of the love of life and dreams, even though it may appear otherwise.
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