Review: All is Lost

Robert Redford runs into serious trouble when his yacht hits a shipping container that was floating in the middle of the Indian Ocean, causing considerable damage. He manages a quick fix, but it’s obvious that this will only be temporary and he’s gonna need every bit of inner strength he has to keep from losing all hope as things worsen.

 

More “Cast Away” than “The Life of Pi”, this 2013 film from writer-director J. C. Chandor isn’t as good as either of those two films (or Chandor’s own previous film “Margin Call”), but if you like Robert Redford and don’t mind minimalist, dialogue-free films about harrowing subjects, this is pretty well-done. I have misgivings about the film’s rather confusing ending, and I think some back-story on the main character would’ve helped make the film even better, but it’s still a pretty good film.

 

Full-credit to Robert Redford here, he’s always been known as more of a movie star than actor, but at age 77 he hasn’t aged gracefully and seems willing to accept that, rather than try and pretty himself up in the makeup chair. He also apparently did most of his own stunts, which is just plain insane. If ever you’ve felt the same as me about Redford’s merely OK acting talents, this film proves that he’s more than just a movie star. I mean, he’s the whole show here for the film’s roughly two hours. You have to be a pretty damn commanding screen presence and talented actor to keep an invested solely on you and your character’s plight for that amount of time. Yes, I the film could’ve been even better with more character depth, but Redford does remarkably well with what little he is given.

 

The film’s other great asset is the cinematography by Frank G. DeMarco and underwater cinematographer Peter Zuccarini (the latter  underwhelmed me with his underwater work on the otherwise lovely-looking “Turistas”). The fact that this film garnered no nomination for cinematography is a true travesty. It looks beautiful, and since the film is pretty minimalist on dialogue and camera, it’s up to Chandor and the cinematographers to tell the story visually just as much as Redford’s facial expressions do their part. It’s an absolutely terrific employment of handheld camerawork, some of the best I’ve ever seen. It gets you in close, but without too much shaking. Some is necessary of course, given the turbulence of life on the sea.

 

I must admit that I think the title chosen and opening voiceover narration are a bit of a mistake, but so is the frankly confusing ending (In which the audience seems invited to interpret it for themselves. I’m not sure this is the right film for ambiguity to be honest). This is quite harrowing stuff and won’t be for everyone, but it’s a sometimes frightening and even claustrophobic film that has been stunningly shot and well-acted. I personally prefer “Cast Away”, as this film doesn’t do anything that film didn’t already do better. Yes, one’s on an island and the other out at sea, but they are the same basic concept, just one is more minimalist than the other. A more conclusive ending and a little more character depth, though, and this one might’ve actually given “Cast Away” a serious run for its money. It’s a beautiful-looking film (aside from one shonky bit of green screen), and definitely recommended to Redford fans.

 

Rating: B-