Science uses animals for respective experiments that have advanced our world in different areas such as health and disease. The study of other lower life species is done in different areas.
As much as we try to avoid harm to the ecosystem, many specimens subjected to tests, studies or experiments die in the process. From a certain point of view, it is wrong for that to happen, but it is necessary for science to progress.
You may be wondering, isn't this a movie review? Yes, but when you finish watching the movie, which keeps us puzzled for most of the footage, wondering what is going on.
It will all make sense in the end and you'll understand the reason for these introductory words.
Independent productions are my favorite. I love to find films with an original plot, made with few means, little known actors, but that manage to absorb you with the story they tell you.
Even better, when they tackle the sci-fi and horror genre. The Block Island Sound is one of those strange films, which are not perfect, but they have something original to tell us and they do it in a way that keeps us in the seat, asking us questions that we do not know how to answer, until the final climax arrives and the cycle closes, getting the answer.
What is the plot of the film?
Something strange happens on the coast of Block Island, a large number of fish wash ashore dead. Tom is an old fisherman who behaves strangely and seems to hear strange noises. He goes out in the small boat the night before and returns the next day. His son Harry senses something is wrong and asks his sister Audrey, who lives in Rhode Island, to come visit him. She works at a marine species protection and research center and travels to Block Island with her young daughter Emily and her employee. Everything gets complicated when a friend who believes in conspiracy theories warns Harry that there are reports of birds and fish turning up dead in large numbers in other parts of the world. Tom goes out one night on the boat, disappears and a few days later is found dead on the shore. What has caused Tom to go mad? What are the noises Harry begins to hear? Is he also going mad like his father? Where was his father traveling on the boat? What the hell is going on?
The film never gives clear explanations of what is happening, the first hour of the film we will be somewhat lost, watching some scenes that give us to understand that something is affecting the whole area of Block Island. But we don't know what it is.
Tom seems quite affected, acting very strangely, that motivates his son to call Adudrey, to visit them and talk to his father. Everyone thinks it's because of his mother's death, that Tom still hasn't gotten over the loss of his wife.
Audrey goes with her young daughter Emily, unaware of the great danger they will be in on Block Island. She plans to leave the next day, but Tom's disappearance forces her to stay on the island.
Harry and Audrey, the siblings. They are the protagonists of the story. He is a young man who has believed in the island and does not seem to have a good future. Audrey, on the other hand, has a good job, a daughter and is focused on her life in Rhode Island.
The strange circumstances of Tom's death, will make Harry suspect that something has happened, that it may have been murder. His sister wants to put it behind her and think it was an accident. The police say Tom had been drinking heavily lately. But Harry doesn't believe any of it. His father's death affects him too much, finding out the truth will become an obsession, which will make him lose his sanity.
Harry is determined to find the truth and takes the boat to go to the place where his father was left in the middle of the sea. What will happen there will be surprising and unexplainable. Soon Harry begins to hear the same noises as his father and to act strangely. Is he real, is he hallucinating?
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The story has elements of science fiction, when we discover what happens in the sea, maybe some can guess what it is, but surely most viewers will be intrigued to know the truth.
The terror is present, because of the suspenseful scenes, with the behavior of the characters, first Tom, then Harry. Plus the deteriorating health and some things that come out in certain scenes. All those scenes manage to be disturbing and it's the best thing about the film.
Much of the action takes place in the protagonist family's house and in the sea. That strange sea where fish die in astonishing numbers.
The filmmakers dare to include a bit of humor, with a totally paranoid character, who is Harry's friend. He is a man who believes in every conspiracy theory possible, and has an explanation for everything that is going on, it is the government doing some kind of test. Unfortunately he will be totally wrong, on one part of his theory.
What is happening on Block Island has no logical explanation within our world.
Who is directing?
The film is directed by filmmaking brothers Kevin McManus and Matthew McManus. Both with experience in various fields of the industry, they are producers, screenwriters and directors. They have even participated in TV series such as American Vandal and Cobra Kai. Kevin was once nominated for an Emmy Award. This is their second film as directors. The first one he released in 2012 and it was called Funeral Kings. I haven't seen it, I didn't know these directors. Now I want to find their first film to watch.
The directors also co-wrote the screenplay for the film. The cinematography is by Alan Gwizdowski . 30 Bones Cinema, along with Hood River Entertainment and other small production companies, have made this project a reality.
The film was screened last year at the Fantasia Film Festival and critical reception has been positive.
Characters
Harry, the young man who doesn't believe that his father died in an accident, decides to go to the place where the ship was found, never imagining that something terrifying will happen and change his life completely. Harry is played by actor Chris Sheffield, who many young people will recognize from his work in the series The Maze Runner and The Last Ship.
Audry is Harry's older sister. She has a daughter named Emily and a job off the island. She will return to Block Island to see what happens to her father, never imagining that she will have to do everything she can to save Emily's life and her own. The actress was a recurring character for a time on the series Law & Order Special Victims Unit.
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Tom is the father of Harry and Audrey. He is the fisherman who started acting strange and disturbing. The actor's face is in itself quite disturbing. The actor had already worked with the directors, in a film of which they were producers: 14 Camaras.
Another character is Dale, played by filmmaker Jim Cummings, whose horror film The Wolf of Snow Hollow I reviewed last year. I recognized his face when I saw it. He is an actor but also writes and directs films, the one I reviewed a while back, I recommend it.
The girl Matilda Lawle plays Emily, Audrey's daughter who in the final part of the film, her life will be in imminent danger.
The cast is not made up of Hollywood superstars, but I love that. I like to see new faces and in this kind of movie it's better not to be distracted by a known actor. That's what I like about independent productions. In this film everyone is fine in their respective characters, they were all believable and do a good job.
The sci-fi and horror are well combined, the story keeps us on edge until the end. Because we all want to know what is happening on that island that people are behaving in an unusual way. Fish are dying and even birds are starting to fall from the sky lifeless.
Pay attention to a small scene in which Audrey talks to Emily. The girl asks her about her work, about what she does in that organization where they study and preserve marine species. In this brief conversation is the explanation of everything.
The Block Island Sound is a good option for those who are looking for something different, without so many special effects and that fulfills the objectives of creating an intriguing atmosphere. It is my recommended movie to watch this weekend. Don't forget to comment your opinion about the movie.
My Ranking: 3.7/5
Trailer
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