The crew of a West of Ireland trawler, marooned at sea, struggle for their lives against a growing parasite in their water supply.
Part of the reason I left Ireland in 1994 was that it had no film industry. My dream, since I was a child, was to become a filmmaker so I left for the US and have made a lot of movies since arriving here but in the time since I left, Ireland has come a long way, in terms of film and television. Shows like “Game of Thrones,” “Vikings,” “The Tudors,” and “Dublin Murders” were filmed there as well as movies like “Braveheart,” parts of “Saving Private Ryan,” “Hellboy II: The Golden Army,” “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” and its less-than-stellar follow-up, “Star Wars: The Last Jedi.” Granted, these productions shot partly in Ireland but whether it was the Giant’s Causeway in County Antrim in Northern Ireland (Hellboy II) or Skellig Michael in County Kerry on the west coast of Ireland (Star Wars), they brought Ireland back into the Hollywood spotlight and now more productions are taking up residence there as a result, as well as an upsurge in touristry.
With “Sea Fever,” a co-production between Ireland, the USA, the UK, Sweden, and Belgium, we have a thriller that was shot completely in Ireland and for me, one of the best sci-fi movies to come along in years. While some might argue that another Irish production, the 2012 monster movie “Grabbers,” could be lumped in with “Sea Fever,” I would have to protest because while “Grabbers” was fun, “Sea Fever” is serious in its overall tone, and sometimes, you just need weighty and contemplative science fiction.
Siobhán (Hermione Corfield) is a marine biologist who decides to tag along with her friend Johnny (Jack Hickey), a fisherman who works on the Irish trawler Niaṁh Cinn Óir (a reference to Irish mythology’s Tír na nÓg, or Land of the Young). Her trek will include diving underwater and studying marine life far out to sea. The trawler is led by its captain, Freya (Connie Nielsen) and her husband Gerard (Dougray Scott). Hiding financial insecurities from their crew, they insist that this trip is either make or break for them all and as they make their way out to a section of the Atlantic which is known for its abundance of fish, the boat suddenly stalls and comes to a complete stop. Siobhán decides this is the perfect time for her to study some marine life, under the guise of helping her fellow crew members but once she dives underneath the trawler, she sees illuminated tendrils attached to something much bigger in the depths below and when the tendrils begin to make their way toward her, she quickly surfaces and gets out of the water.
She tries to explain to the others what she saw but they put it down to the creature being a big squid, nothing more. She states that the tendrils were attached to the bottom of the boat and belives that whatever the creature is, it obviously mistook them for a large sea mammal, such as a whale. Below deck, small patches begin to appear on the hull where the tendrils are still attached and when pressed, a slimy, green liquid oozes out. Eventually, the tendrils disengage the boat and they begin to make their way back to shore. Along the way, one of the crew members starts acting strangely and when their eyes explode out of their head, killing them instantly, Siobhán takes it upon herself to figure out why. Soon thereafter, she determines that the green slime is filled with a microscopic organism and that it has made its way into the boat’s water supply. Since people have showered and drank from the supply, Siobhán insists that they remain at sea for at least 36 hours so that they will know for certain, who is infected and who is not. Naturally, nobody else agrees, stating that once they make it back to shore they can seek medical help but Siobhán knows that if it reaches the mainland, it will spread like wildfire so she devises a plan to keep them at sea, but her fellow crew members’ anger is the least of her worries.
“Sea Fever” is a taut, suspenseful, sci-fi thriller that thankfully never resorts to clichéd jump scares and the dreaded shaky-cam that sadly appears to envelop many films of this ilk. There are some moments of levity but for the most part, the movie cruises along with a serious tone and as a result of that choice, it is all the better because of it. By virtue of the claustrophobic environment and some of the scientific elements, it will undoubtedly be compared to classics such as “Alien” and “The Thing” but that is not fair, “Sea Fever” might share some of those two classic films’ components but that is where the similarities end. The cast is filled with some well-known names including Connie Nielsen (“Wonder Woman”), Dougray Scott (“Mission: Impossible 2”), and our lead protagonist, Hermione Corfield (“Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation”), who steals the show with her fiery determination and steely resolve. Irish director Neasa Hardiman delivers a fresh take on a worn-out genre and delivers the scares, when necessary, and enough tension and suspense to last right up until the closing shot. With so many movies going straight to digital and on-demand these days, this would well be worth your time. Very highly recommended.
Available on Digital Friday, April 10th
