When Stranded at Sea, Adventure Becomes Survival

Sam Claflin and Shailene Woodley in "Adrift"
Photo Credit: Imdb.com

Out of all of the survival stories we’ve seen in film, some of the most harrowing tend to be the ones with characters who are stuck in the middle of the ocean.  In these movies, the situations are much more dire, as you have nothing around you but the vast waters and horizon, you’re not sure how far away you are from the land, and you might not have the proper necessities.  Several films have tackled this narrative, such as Alfred Hitchcock’s “Lifeboat,” Chris Kentis’ “Open Water,” Ang Lee’s “Life of Pi,” and J.C. Chandor’s “All Is Lost.”  

Now, Baltasar Kormákur returns to the survival genre (he directed 2015’s “Everest”) with “Adrift,” which is based on a true story.  With a gripping performance from Shailene Woodley and accomplished camerawork, Kormákur’s able to provide us with a film that manages to rise above its sometimes-routine narrative.

In 1983, Tami Oldham (Woodley) and her boyfriend, Richard Sharp (Sam Claflin), decide to sail from Tahiti to San Diego.  When their boat is wrecked during a storm, the two must do whatever they can to survive and figure out how to make it to land.

Woodley provides heartrending work as a young woman who must brave the elements in order to rescue herself and Richard, and she shows that she’s able to take charge of the screen whenever she’s the only one there (Richard becomes lost for some time after the storm).  Woodley throws all of her talent into exhibiting the hopelessness and frustration of being stranded, making us feel the emotional toll of being alone in such conditions.  As the story goes on, Woodley taps into her character’s deepest resilience as Tami endeavors to survive, and all of this culminates in a performance that provides the film with a lot of its power.

The chemistry between Woodley and Claflin does a great deal in making us care about the characters and keeps us invested throughout.  When they’re on screen, we witness the blossoming of a relationship that’s built on love and the thrill of finding adventure, both of which are shown to be inextinguishable.

Robert Richardson graces the film with his accomplished-as-always cinematography.  Besides the shots of the ocean that range from gorgeous to foreboding, his most-memorable work in the film is his use of long takes, particularly in the scenes on land where Tami and Richard build their relationship.  By doing this, he immerses us in the flawless rapport between Woodley and Clafin as we see their interactions play out and feelings for each other strengthen.

One of the best uses of Richardson’s long takes is the opening scene, which occurs inside the boat after the storm (the film goes back and forth between the events before and after the storm).  This scene is about five minutes, and Richardson has the camera follow Woodley around the wreckage as she surveys the damage.  It allows us to experience her realization of disaster as it unfolds in its fullest and to see the dire situation that she’s in.

The screenplay by Aaron Kandell, Jordan Kandell, and David Branson Smith, which is based on Tami Oldham Ashcraft and Susea McGearhart’s book, “Red Sky in Mourning: A True Story of Love, Loss, and Survival at Sea,” does well in building the two main characters and their relationship to help us learn about them and their passion for adventure, while the scenes after the storm provide us with many scenes that let us see Tami and Richard’s survival skills when their adventure becomes life-threatening.  Although this is a type of narrative that we’ve seen before, the character-building makes up for that.  And, the back-and-forth between the past and present helps to reinforce the film’s theme of memory and how what we experience in the past can provide us with the fortitude to get through challenging times.

While there’s nothing surrounding our main characters but miles of water throughout half of the movie, Kormákur makes the most out of their surroundings by showing the beauty of the ocean on the clearest of days, as well as the dangers during the tense storm sequence.  He’s also able to capture the romance between Tami and Richard in such a way that makes it feel natural and avoids the abundance of schmaltz that you’d find in a movie that’s based on a Nicholas Sparks book. 

While “Adrift” sometimes doesn’t go beyond more than what’s on the exterior, it still has enough talent that’s present to encourage you to see this film, a testament to the perseverance of which people are capable when facing an unimaginable challenge.

Final grade: B+