ALLAN HUNTER at the Movies

HORROR ISN’T always about scary monsters and evil boogey men. Sometimes, the most banal moments can turn towards terror in the blinking of an eye. That’s the scenario that is developed in ‘Adrift’, a true story that leaves you wondering how you might have reacted under the same circumstances.

It is a polished and persuasive recreation of real events hampered by the fact that none of the characters are particularly likable or especially smart.

The film tells of three couples who assemble for a weekend cruise on a luxury yacht. Opening shots from an old home movie hint at past relationships, old wounds and unresolved issues that may return to haunt them.

The most interesting of the women is Amy (Susan May Pratt). A responsible mother with a young baby, she remains traumatised by the childhood drowning of her father.

The brash Dan (Eric Dane) stupidly decides that the best way to cure her fear of water is to pick her up and jump overboard into the ocean. All six of them are now in the water but nobody had thought to lower the boarding ladder.

They make futile attempts to clamber up the slippery side of the yacht but it quickly becomes apparent that there is no way back.

A sombre film, ‘Adrift’ is well-made and intriguing. The story always leaves you wanting to know what happens next, and provides a fascinating reflection of how human nature works in the most extreme circumstances.

It is certainly more gripping than the not entirely dissimilar ‘Open Water’, which was released last year.

Selected nationwide release
Director: Hans Horn
Stars: Susan May Pratt, Richard Speight Jr, Niklaus Lange, Ali Hillis, Cameron Richardson
Screenwriters: Adam Kreutner, Dave Mitchell
Certificate: 15
Running time: 95 mins
Country: Germany/USA
Year: 2006

© Allan Hunter, 2006