Angel at Sea (2009)

Best movie of this year hands down!

Wow! Such a good movie.

Too much of everything

Don't listen to the negative reviews

The scenery is nice, the camera-work is good. The casting and the acting are excellent. It's a carefully crafted story and perhaps this movie is, as some have claimed it to be, a wonderful study in psychology but as it also contains some totally unnecessary animal abuse I now feel tainted from having watched it. If I'd known about the ill treatment in advance I wouldn't have watched it.

Young Louis and his family live in a nice neighbourhood in the picturesque village of Sidi Ifni on the Moroccan coast. His father suffers from severe depression, the impact of which is not fully appreciated by his mother or older brother. His father refuses to get help and withdraws totally into his office where he spends his days working, or more often brooding in silence. One day he shares a secret with Louis after swearing him to secrecy. This terrible secret would have a profound impact on Louis' once happy life. From now on the boy would shadow his father, with major ramifications for the boy.The title refers to a French poem, as well as the role that Louis tries to play in his father's life.This is in every respect a well-crafted film. The drama unfolding at home is handled with restraint and subtlety, the acting by Martin Nissen (Louis) and Olivier Gourmet (his father), in particular, is truly outstanding. Their body language and facial expressions say more than words could do. The cinematography is imaginative and reflects the troubled nature of the subject matter. Indeed, the camera-work is some of the best I had seen in quite some time. The soundtrack should be mentioned too, with haunting North African melodies adding to the melancholic ambiance of this outstanding film. 9/10.

Fedric Dumonts debut feature that was a well deserved winner at the 2009 Karlovy Vary International Film Fest Crystal Globe for best film and actor. A Psychological look at a father and son relationship. A manic depressive and suicidal man confides the trust of his son to keep a dark secret with devastating consequences takes a toll on the whole family. Beautifully shot flawlessly written and directed this gem of a film deserved more exposure than what it got internationally. Olivier Gouurmet and Martin Nissen give outstanding performances. I cant wait to see what else Fredric Dumont will create with his gifted talent. Take not American film makers this is great film making.

Though there were certainly some visually beautiful and emotionally strong moments in this film, its theme may not be ultimately fulfilling for all viewers. Maybe it appeals more to people closer to the boy's age, rather than the father's. It was hard to accept that the father bestowed such a terrible secret upon his son, and harder to imagine that the son would keep that secret, when breaking his silence might have been of help to his father. By the end, I was hoping the father would make good his threat and end everybody's pain--his own, his son's, mine, and by now his family's as well, since the son's behavior in watching over his father and trying to keep it a secret was further disrupting the family (of course, the father's suicide would have had other tragic consequences for the children, but that would have been a different movie). The end--though maybe seen by some as a twist--was not a surprise and provided neither resolution nor satisfaction. I can see why some would be drawn into this film. I wasn't.