‘We’re all vulnerable to infection…’
While the ongoing coronavirus situation is clearly a terrible thing, there are some beneficiaries. Streaming services, online retailers and supermarkets continue to thrive. In the world of cinema, many productions have been cancelled or delayed and the box office remains at £0. Low budget Irish horror/sci-fi Sea Fever – with its fable of infection, disease and quarantine – has arrived at just the right time, however…
Siobahn (Hermoine Corfield) is an expert in ethology – the study of animal behaviour – and is thrown on to a rough and ready sea trawler for some first hand experience. When a mysterious creature attaches itself to the boat, the crew soon start to succumb to a deadly parasite.
Some of the tropes here will be immediately familiar to those of us stranded in lockdown. The mistrust of others, the deadly contagion, the scramble to rid the boat of infection, it’s all there. If one of the characters had spent 12 hours playing Mario Kart and shoving chocolate into their face, it would have been time to claim the prize on the bingo card of my lockdown. The cast do a good job of bringing this paranoia to life, particularly Corfield who shines as the level headed but emotionally distant protagonist.
First time director Neasa Hardiman does a good job in capturing the claustrophobic suspicion that sweeps throughout the boat, eventually becoming just as deadly as the virus itself. Hardiman also excels in ensuring the creature remains frightening and menacing by barely showing it until the film’s fatal conclusion – this allows the reaction of the characters to convey the horror that has befallen them.
Sea Fever is an unintentionally timely film that will be seen by many more people than it would have normally due to the circumstances of its release. That being said, it is well worth 90 minutes of anyone’s time – particularly those that have an interest in dark science fiction.