All is Lost

Movie Name: All is Lost
Year of Release: 2013

Director: J.C. Chandor

Stars: Robert Redford

Genre: Action, Adventure, Drama

Score out of ten (whole numbers only): 8

Synopsis:

Director J.C. Chandor is back, after his impressive feature debut with "Margin Call". "All is Lost" follows the story of a man who is crossing the Indian Ocean on his own, and who wakes up one day to discover his yacht has collided with a shipping container dumped in the ocean. This resourceful man manages to patch the damage the best way possible, but his situation goes from bad to worse, when a storm of epic proportions hits him, destroying his ship beyond redemption. His only alternative is to seek refuge on a raft and salvage whatever food and water he has left. Through his resources and intelligence, the man manages to overcome further obstacles, in the hopes of reaching an area where he can be hopefully spotted by a ship.
"All is Lost" is a seemingly straightforward story - how a man of a certain age and experience survives at sea on his own. But beyond that it also becomes the story of a person coming to terms with the certainty of his own demise. The main character is put through so many obstacles, so much torment that by the end of the film, it's only understandable his state of mental and physical fatigue.
The film provides a great canvas for Robert Redford to play one of his rugged and stoic heroes. However unlike some of his previous efforts, this is an every day man trying to survive a battle that far surpasses his means. The cinematography from Frank G. DeMarco and Peter Zuccarini is stunning. A great film worth watching.