The Sea Inside (DVD)

Alejandro Amenabar's THE SEA INSIDE (MAR ADENTRO) was released in 2004, five years after his cult Spanish favourite OPEN YOUR EYES (ABRE LOS OJOS), the psychological thriller, unfortunately inspired Cameron Crowe to make his dreadful remake VANILLA SKY with Tom Cruise. After a quick foray to America for his first English speaking film, THE OTHERS, a horror starring Nicole Kidman, he then returned home to Spain to tinker with another genre, this time ...
...thirty years, completely paralysed from the waist down. As defunct as his body is, his mind is arrow sharp with thoughts of ending his life as he spends his long drawn-out days in bed awaiting a court's decision, after decades of legal toing-and-froing, to finally give him the right to die in a country where suicide is not only illegal but, ironically, Spanish judicial procedures are expected to take a lifetime anyway. He is cared for by his devoted ... more

Alejandro Amenabar's THE SEA INSIDE (MAR ADENTRO) was released in 2004, five years after his cult Spanish favourite OPEN YOUR EYES (ABRE LOS OJOS), the psychological thriller, unfortunately inspired Cameron Crowe to make his dreadful remake VANILLA SKY with Tom Cruise. After a quick foray to America for his first English speaking film, THE OTHERS, a horror starring Nicole Kidman, he then returned home to Spain to tinker with another genre, this time a traditional melodrama.

Ramon Sampedro has been a quadriplegic for thirty years, completely paralysed from the waist down. As defunct as his body is, his mind is arrow sharp with thoughts of ending his life as he spends his long drawn-out days in bed awaiting a court's decision, after decades of legal toing-and-froing, to finally give him the right to die in a country where suicide is not only illegal but, ironically, Spanish judicial procedures are expected to take a lifetime anyway. He is cared for by his devoted family and is regularly visited by people charmed by his self-deprecating sense of humour, most notably a lonely single mother with low esteem and his new lawyer, Julia. Although Julia is married she and Ramon's relationship quickly borders between professional and romantic, owing to a strong bond between them, and before long, before he can analyse the situation, he unexpectedly finds he loves both women, one of whom he hopes will ultimately love him enough to help him die.

If my suspicions are correct that Amenabar is surfing through the different types of cinematic genres then he can certainly scribble melodrama off his list because in its own terms THE SEA INSIDE is classic melodrama. All the ingredients are there, wedged in, and all the tears are there, soaked through, but how much of it is new? If you can stop crying long enough to consider this question the disappointing answer is quite clear. Nothing is new. It is an emotionally draining true story and hooray for solid factual retellings of events that have happened but how many of these can you see on afternoon television every day? Films based on true stories are a given, if you can't fault them then it's likely you probably shouldn't. Does anything, then, differentiate THE SEA INSIDE to all the others?

Melodramas, traditionally, of course, are not easy films to watch, which is why the biggest problem for the majority of them is that something in the production, usually the acting, doesn't quite match up to the dramatic premise of the film. The SEA INSIDE is a great example, it's main character being a man you have to like enough so as not to want him to die whilst understanding and ultimately respecting his decision to die. It is a difficult persona to adopt but master actor Javier Bardem, the Spanish equivalent of Robert De Niro, pulls off another astonishing performance, so astonishing it isn't only Ramon's family who grieves his final departure but us, the audience as well, pulling us in so that the people who care for Ramon, his family and friends, and the audience are, by the end of the film, as one. An astonishing achievement.

Amenabar, as writer, director, editor and musical composer, has with THE SEA INSIDE, if not created a great film, contributed to his tiny but perfectly condensed oeuvre with his best film yet. From psychological thriller to horror to conventional melodrama I wouldn't be surprised if his next outing is something once again entirely different. Neither would I be surprised if everything he's done up until now has been the auteur's own personal apprentiship to eventual greatness. I for one am very excited at the prospect. A very good film. 

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