The Sea

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The Sea

R,

2003,

1h 49m,

Drama

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Watchlist

Watchlist

49%

51 Reviews

Tomatometer

64%

250+ Ratings

Popcornmeter

49%

Tomatometer

51 Reviews

64%

Popcornmeter

250+ Ratings

In this Icelandic drama, the family of Thordur (Gunnar Eyjolfsson), the wealthy owner of a fishery, reunites, but it's far from a happy gathering. When the patriarch's youngest son, Agust (Hilmir Snaer Gudnason), visits from Paris along with his French girlfriend, Françoise (Hélène de Fougerolles), their presence exacerbates tensions with various relatives, including the eldest brother Haraldur (Sigurdur Skulason), who works at the fishery, and his disenchanted wife, Aslaug (Elva Osk Olafsdottir).

Critics Consensus

This look at a fraught family reunion should be easily relatable, but The Sea drowns viewers in melodrama when it should be carrying them toward darkly comedic shores.

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Eric Henderson

Slant Magazine

Sep 27, 2003

1.5/4

Kormkur is fully content pimping his particular love/hate relationships with the beautiful/harsh landscapes of Iceland in as many different masochistic scenarios as possible.

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Lisa Kennedy

Denver Post

Jul 11, 2003

2.5/4

There is something willfully balanced about director- co-writer Baltasar Kormakur's vision of this imploding family.

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Steven Rea

Philadelphia Inquirer

Jun 19, 2003

3/4

A subzero saga where dysfunction and distress -- and large quantities of herring -- rule.

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Bruce Feld

Film Journal International

Mar 1, 2007

Though there are ugly events galore, there is not an ugly frame in this entire masterpiece of a soap opera by the sea.

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Paul Sherman

Boston Herald

Jul 16, 2005

2/4

Kent Turner

Film-Forward.com

Apr 20, 2004

2.5/5

The confrontational family dinner features archetypes that would have been at home on Dallas.

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Baltasar Kormákur

Director

Gunnar Eyjolfsson

Þórður

Hilmir Snær Guðnason

Ágúst

Hélène de Fougerolles

Françoise

Kristbjörg Kjeld

Kristín

Herdis Thorvaldsdottir

Kata

Novo

50%

49%

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Synopsis

In this Icelandic drama, the family of Thordur (Gunnar Eyjolfsson), the wealthy owner of a fishery, reunites, but it's far from a happy gathering. When the patriarch's youngest son, Agust (Hilmir Snaer Gudnason), visits from Paris along with his French girlfriend, Françoise (Hélène de Fougerolles), their presence exacerbates tensions with various relatives, including the eldest brother Haraldur (Sigurdur Skulason), who works at the fishery, and his disenchanted wife, Aslaug (Elva Osk Olafsdottir).

Director: Baltasar Kormákur
Producer: Baltasar Kormákur, Jean-François Fonlupt
Screenwriter: Baltasar Kormákur, Olafur Haukur Simonarson
Distributor: Palm Pictures
Rating: R (Language|Sexuality)
Genre: Drama
Original Language: Icelandic
Release Date (Theaters): May 16, 2003, Wide
Release Date (DVD): May 13, 2008
Box Office (Gross USA): $62.3K
Runtime: 1h 49m
Sound Mix: Surround

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