Breaking Surface

Two half-sisters go diving on the Norwegian coast in winter. A rock falls underwater and pins Ida's leg. Her air is running out, Tuva is on the surface and out of phone coverage. Everything the rescue requires edges towards the impossible. The film is not interested in diving. It is interested in arithmetic: it works almost as a problem in time, constantly counting the air left, the distance, the cold and the damage each new descent does to the body. The old guilt between the sisters sits on top of that. The form is narrow and quiet: two actors, an empty coast, underwater photography and almost no music. When nobody speaks, only breathing is left. Joachim Hedén directed. The underwater sections were shot on real dives, and the film takes care to show how the equipment works and how long a tank lasts; that detail puts the tension on a technical footing. Moa Gammel and Madeleine Martin star. Who it is for: viewers who like survival thrillers and single-location construction. Who it is not for: anyone with claustrophobia. The film stays underwater for long stretches and aims to pass the shortness of breath to the audience.