Joachim Hedén

(In French, On Cable TV, June 2021) As with many thrillers taking place in a confined space, there’s a lean and mean quality to Nordic thriller Breaking Surface that helps it overcome a few plausibility issues. Featuring two half-sisters venturing underwater for fun, the film soon turns serious when one of them is trapped underwater by falling boulders, leaving the other one to find a way to free her. Complications quickly accumulate, trapping our heroines into a situation that seems increasingly merciless. The cold cinematography is chilling enough, but it gets worse, as one sister does her best to find help in a place indifferent to human lives. As pure a human-vs-nature story as we’ve seen lately, Breaking Surface gets to an almost unbearable level of suspense early in its third act. Upon reflection, many of the complications don’t make much sense, are contrived for impact and can’t avoid the supposedly trained characters acting in silly ways. But there won’t be many chances for reflection, as the film gets increasingly tense, forgiving a rather loose and leisurely opening act when the plot really gets going. Writer-Director Joachim Hedén can certainly keep the tension going, and his stark, almost monochrome cinematography does help in grounding the action — even if it makes it a bit too dispassionate at times. Still, Breaking Surface is quite an interesting effort — and the perfect film for a hot summer evening.