ALL IS LOST: The Movie

[letsgetsailing3]

I can't believe this isn't playing anywhere near me, but I can see "Cloudy with a chance of Meatballs", or "The Millers".

Maybe this is why I don't go to the movies much.

[hpeer]

Originally Posted by Julie Mor

This isn't a movie about human survival nor is it about a seasoned sailor who had the misfortune of having his boat impaled by a shipping container. It's the story of a man who lost everything, family, friends, job, dignity, respect and sense of self worth. All is lost. Life wasn't supposed to be like this so he held on to a thread of hope but that thread was slipping through his hands slowly. And that's how he would go out, but he wanted to do it with some sense of dignity.

I walked into the movie expecting to see the story of sailor who was faced with a great challenge. But instead of reacting like someone who wanted to survive, he showed no sense of urgency, from the moment he found his ship was impaled, to ensuring the boat was seaworthy, to pumping it dry, to preparing for the storm, and on it went. This man had all but given up.

But I didn't get that until the final scene. I'm not sure how they could have done a better job conveying that at the beginning of the movie without giving it all away, but it's the only thing that makes sense to me. How many men would shave their face just as a storm approaches rather than prepare their boat for the storm? He was preparing the body for the wake.

If you take the premise that he set sail feeling hopeless about getting back what he lost and seeing the ocean as his final resting place, everything else makes sense. And when he breaks down crying, it's because he's thinking of everything he lost, before he even set sail.

He makes half-hearted attempts at saving himself but repeatedly sets himself up for disaster. He doesn't care but he doesn't want to go out with a bullet in his head. He had to at least look like he tried. And in the end he gets his wish, when the hand reaches out from the light and takes him home.

Interesting take.

[Sam Plan B]

Originally Posted by Julie Mor

This isn't a movie about human survival nor is it about a seasoned sailor who had the misfortune of having his boat impaled by a shipping container. It's the story of a man who lost everything, family, friends, job, dignity, respect and sense of self worth.

Very interestng and thoughtful take on the film. The opening voice over hints at the loss of family through his own death...he says he fought to the end and is sorry. Is he sorry he has failed in his voyage and will not see his loved ones again? That's what I took away. But the rest, lost friends, job, dignity etc., I didn't find anything in the film to suggest that. Maybe the extra script pages explaining it all were cut or maybe they were never written. Maybe the property manager lost the bucket for Our Man to bail with and they didn't have time to get another. Maybe they could not afford a flash back or dream sequence. Just guessing since the movie itself doesn't give me much to go on. Maybe all will be found in All Is Lost 2, coming to a theater near you.

[Navicula]

I am the one that lost...........I lost 25 bucks going to see it........this is much more entertaining .....and hey............its free

regardless its just my opinion...and I am weird

[Therapy]

Originally Posted by Islenya

Amen to that! I used to be a flight attendant with a major airline. I had him in first class, on his way to a... political event... at the White House. He sat huddled in his own empty row; never spoke or made eye contact with anyone. Sad case.

Huh!

[Ti' Punch]

Good analysis Julie. I didn't get all that when I saw the movie last night. I just had to bite my tongue the whole time to keep from screaming "Hasn't he read the bucket thread on CF!". Very frustrating movie, but it makes more sense when viewed from the perspective you just laid out.

[Julie Mor]

Originally Posted by Sam Plan B

Very interestng and thoughtful take on the film. The opening voice over hints at the loss of family through his own death...he says he fought to the end and is sorry. Is he sorry he has failed in his voyage and will not see his loved ones again? That's what I took away. But the rest, lost friends, job, dignity etc., I didn't find anything in the film to suggest that. Maybe the extra script pages explaining it all were cut or maybe they were never written. Maybe the property manager lost the bucket for Our Man to bail with and they didn't have time to get another. Maybe they could not afford a flash back or dream sequence. Just guessing since the movie itself doesn't give me much to go on. Maybe all will be found in All Is Lost 2, coming to a theater near you.

The idea is he had already lost everything, whatever that may be. For me, falling to that level of despair, it would have to be family, friends, dignity, respect, etc.

This is his letter, which I think was written in his mind long before he set sail:

"I'm sorry. I know that means little at this point, but I am. I tried. I think you would all agree that I tried. To be true, to be strong, to be kind, to love, to be right. But I wasn't."

You can interpret that in whatever way you want, but he did things in his life to cause the loss of everything towards the end of his life. If you see him as someone who thought he did the right things but, only when it was too late, found out he did everything wrong, then the things he did or didn't do in the movie make sense.

Just about everything he did that made us sailors cringe, was done by someone who had planned to never return. Who here would fall asleep in a hammock, just above waist deep water in the cabin of the boat? Who would have chosen to shave rather than set the storm jib and then, when the storm peaked, decide to set the jib by taking it out of the bag first? Who would have tacked the boat and then watch the ocean pour into the gaping hole? Who would have tied their liferaft to a sinking boat then fall asleep in the raft? Who would have started a fire in a plastic bin while still in the liferaft?

No, this man had no plans of coming back from this trip alive. He set himself up to die. He just wasn't sure when that was going to be, probably because part of him still wanted to live, but dying was his ultimate goal.

[ty.gregory]

I'll go with everything you say, here, Julie, except for setting fire to his life-raft. That was his last resort to being seen by the ship. If that ship passes him by, he's out of time. I think in the end, he wanted to live!

[OnTour]

Guess I'll have to wait for it to come out on DVD....Not playing anywhere around here :-(

[JulieMac]

Julie and I saw the movie together last night.

I've got two takes on the movie:

First- Judging by his poor decision making, I'd say the back story was that he chartered a sailboat with his family, sank it and lost everyone onboard except himself! Overcome with grief, he took his last bit of savings and sailed off ill prepared to the middle of the Pacific Ocean-doomed to being lost at sea.

Second- More seriously speaking, I think the small ship searching for him outside of the shipping lanes was an illusion of his own creation. Like the sirens of times past, he was seduced by his self loathing into setting fire to the canister inside of his own boat, causing the final desperate situation. Awaking from 20 meters below, and swimming towards the 'light'? Sounds like an out of body experience to me.

[Navicula]

Originally Posted by JulieMac

Julie and I saw the movie together last night.

I've got two takes on the movie:

First- Judging by his poor decision making, I'd say the back story was that he chartered a sailboat with his family, sank it and lost everyone onboard except himself! Overcome with grief, he took his last bit of savings and sailed off ill prepared to the middle of the Pacific Ocean-doomed to being lost at sea.

Second- More seriously speaking, I think the small ship searching for him outside of the shipping lanes was an illusion of his own creation. Like the sirens of times past, he was seduced by his self loathing into setting fire to the canister inside of his own boat, causing the final desperate situation. Awaking from 20 meters below, and swimming towards the 'light'? Sounds like an out of body experience to me.

I find these stories are better than viewing the movie.......I like this one as well
Thankyou

[Sam Plan B]

[QUOTE=Navicula;1386790]I find these stories are better than viewing the movie.......I like this one as well
QUOTE]

I agree 100%. The two Juilies should have written the screen play and produced the film! (how about, "a 2-JULIES PRODUCTION"). With just a few quick flashbacks their story line would have made perfect sense. Our Man could have been Hamlet coping with all the slings and arrows. But the actual screenwriter did not seem to be up to the task. For me, what you see is what you get. What I saw a jumbled series of nonsequetor sequences. Oh, well.

[Islenya]

Originally Posted by Julie Mor

This isn't a movie about human survival nor is it about a seasoned sailor who had the misfortune of having his boat impaled by a shipping container. It's the story of a man who lost everything, family, friends, job, dignity, respect and sense of self worth. All is lost. Life wasn't supposed to be like this so he held on to a thread of hope but that thread was slipping through his hands slowly. And that's how he would go out, but he wanted to do it with some sense of dignity.

I walked into the movie expecting to see the story of sailor who was faced with a great challenge. But instead of reacting like someone who wanted to survive, he showed no sense of urgency, from the moment he found his ship was impaled, to ensuring the boat was seaworthy, to pumping it dry, to preparing for the storm, and on it went. This man had all but given up.

But I didn't get that until the final scene. I'm not sure how they could have done a better job conveying that at the beginning of the movie without giving it all away, but it's the only thing that makes sense to me. How many men would shave their face just as a storm approaches rather than prepare their boat for the storm? He was preparing the body for the wake.

If you take the premise that he set sail feeling hopeless about getting back what he lost and seeing the ocean as his final resting place, everything else makes sense. And when he breaks down crying, it's because he's thinking of everything he lost, before he even set sail.

He makes half-hearted attempts at saving himself but repeatedly sets himself up for disaster. He doesn't care but he doesn't want to go out with a bullet in his head. He had to at least look like he tried. And in the end he gets his wish, when the hand reaches out from the light and takes him home.

Julie: I was referring to the actor himself. I haven't seen the movie.

Islenya

[MikeinLA]

I found it hard to be sympathetic toward a character who (aside from the relatively minor SIDEWAYS impact with a container) brought about most of his troubles through his own ineptitude and sloth. To me it was like filming a man alone against Mount Everest who approached the challenge clad in a windbreaker and sneakers. You'd walk out of the theater mumbling to yourself, "Schmuck". Which is basically what I did after seeing All Is Lost. "All" included my 12 bucks.

Mike

[DaBod]

This movie opened here in OK this weekend so the wife and I went to see it. I am actually pleased to find that many of my observations align very closely with the overall theme of this thread. I am by no means a seasoned sailor or cruiser, as nearly all of my experience has been on inland lakes. The sailing I have done in saltwater has generally been within a few miles of shore.

Given the brevity of my experience, I find it reassuring that many of the things that raised my eyebrows did the same to individuals with thousands of sea miles under their belts. I understand that this is simply a movie, and was produced for the purposes of entertainment, but it also served as the foundation for relevant and worthwhile conversations between the two of us. Entertainment aside, I think the prompting for those conversations was well worth the $20 in movie tickets.

There is one point on which we can't seem to agree, and I would be interested in hearing some additional opinions. In asking this, please keep in mind my very limited experience...

The fact that SOS was used instead of Mayday aside, I feel like such a radio call was premature. At the point the character made that call he had patched the hole (albeit not that well), was no longer taking on water, had pumped out the standing water, had steerage and functioning sails, had means of navigation, and had adequate provisions.

His situation was no doubt one of distress, but given the aforementioned factors, did it warrant an SOS or Mayday? My wife says "absolutely," but I just don't think so. It very well could be my naiveté, but I would like to think I would not make such a call or abandon ship until there is truly no other option. The boat is, after all, one's home, and I would like to think I would do everything I could to save it.

I'd love to hear some thoughts and opinions of those with more experience...