★★★½☆
Conversations With The Sea is a compelling and insightful family drama that utilizes time and circumstance as an elevated narrative tool.
Muayad Alayan’s latest film follows an elderly Palestinian man who, after being sent a bill from the Social Security office for the debt of his deceased son, embarks on a journey to find out the truth about his circumstantial death.
With a script written by Muayad Alayan and Rami Musa Alayan, the narrative is the perfect blend of being character-driven while remaining substantially compelling and engaging.
The story is layered and complex in some aspects while being easy to follow, yet never straightforward. That is what makes the character development so compelling and engaging.
“The mystery lies within the character, not the narrative.”
While most stories that have a mystery element make the reveal the central pull, here, it’s about understanding the character and the demons that haunt him.
Very early in the first act, it’s hard to understand how he doesn’t know the basic information surrounding his son’s death.
He’s isolated from the outside world and those around him, but that initially feels like a result of the death rather than a prior development. A detail that at first feels underdeveloped becomes critical to understanding the story and his desire to discover the truth.
The mystery lies within the character, not the narrative.
Which is what makes the backbone and structure of the film so compelling, taking what would normally be a slow-burning drama and turning it into a well-paced and engaging character piece.
Lorenzo Casadio Vannucci’s cinematography offers an emotionally compelling aspect.
The shots are crisp and tight throughout. None of them are extravagant or overly complex.
They’re simple, centered, and engaging in a subtle manner.
Mostly everything appears to be shot freehand, with the exception of the first and last few sequences, which gives the film an underlying sense of unease and uncertainty.
“The technical aspects of the film work wonderfully and pair excellently with the on-screen performances.”
It plays beautifully into the tone and rhythm of the film. Even shots where he is sitting at a table across from someone he once knew—a shot that could easily have been captured on a tripod—have a freehand feel. That ever-so-slight movement adds to the effect.
Paired with a score by Fabienne van Eck, the cinematography complements the film wonderfully. Eck’s ability to adapt the score to the moment is what is truly delightful.
During the opening, the score is subtle and light, helping set and establish the tone without overpowering or taking over the scene. All the while, Eck knows exactly how to create a powerful sound that carries a scene.
The score composed to accompany the first set of home-video footage is astonishing. It complements the B-roll footage so well and adds a sense of endearment to the moment, beautifully capturing the sentimental value of the scene.
The technical aspects of the film work wonderfully and pair excellently with the on-screen performances, which are astonishing.
There isn’t a weak performance in the film. However, it goes without question that El Basha bears the weight of the film.
While every member of the cast offers an insightful and pitch-perfect performance, Basha is not only in almost every scene; he’s the heart of the film.
“The film is his emotional journey, and he carries us on his back as we sit back and soak it all in.”
His character is the one with whom we embark on the journey, and it’s his grief, regret, pain, and resentment that we become attached to. The film is his emotional journey, and he carries us on his back as we sit back and soak it all in.
Alayan’s vision for the film is crisp, clear, and very well balanced. While there are moments and scenes in which the pacing is off and some things don’t quite work.
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