Movie Review: All Is Lost
All Is Lost is a one-man show.
Taking minimalism to the extreme, the entire 100-minute film consists of a lone actor, a few scripted lines, on a single location.
Such a no-frills approach could and should make for a compelling story and watchable movie. But the end result of writer-director J.C. Chandor’s (Margin Call) second major motion picture ends up as a pointless film that — like the life raft aimlessly adrift at sea — goes nowhere.
Robert Redford gives an admirable effort as a yachtsman-adventurer who’s sailing around the world in what’s presumed to be the twilight of his life. Now 77, Redford looks and plays this role effortlessly. He’s an amateur seaman who gets in way over his head when his boat suddenly strikes a stray object in the middle of the Pacific Ocean and begins taking on seawater.
Even though we all know what’s going to happen (two words — abandon ship!), watching Redford’s every reaction to the mounting crisis is mesmerizing. The drama here is intentionally low-key, building to a frightful climax, which is Redford in a life raft drifting across the most dangerous waters on earth.
Two things keep us connected in the story. First, the excruciating details of every element of survival make for constant intrigue. As we watch, we also wonder — “what would I do if that happened to me?” Second, and more importantly, we want to know what will eventually happen to Redford. Will he survive? If so, how will his life be saved?
The trouble is — there’s not much here that’s revealing. Not about life. Not about danger. Not about the very distinct possibility of death. It’s a movie devoid of a message. As a wannabe adventurer bit by the bug of wanderlust who decides to circumnavigate the globe, Redford squarely put himself in this predicament and happened to get unlucky by having a maritime accident. Too bad for him he’s stuck drifting across the ocean, 1,500 miles away from the nearest sight of land. Sure, there’s a curious fascination we all have with the survival instinct, like ways to capture the clean drinking water. Or, how to stay afloat in a tiny raft during a terrible storm. Or, how to navigate the open seas only by using the sun and stars. But National Geographic can give us those details in an 8-page article. In a movie, we want and need more.
Unfortunately, All Is Lost provides nothing more than some mindless adventure which just so happens to be watchable for the duration because it includes what’s likely one of the last performances of a movie legend.
If there’s anything remotely interesting beyond watching Redford and the science of survival, it’s the final scene when the hero appears about to be rescued. No spoiler is coming here. Let’s just say that you must watch the final minute or so very carefully in order to understand what really happens to Redford, and even that’s open to different interpretations.
Too bad there wasn’t more intrigue like this interspersed throughout the film. After watching this film, however, all that’s lost was some free time and the price of a matinee ticket.
All Is Lost is marginally interesting, but not recommended.
