The Deep

Trawler fishing has enjoyed something of a cultural boom of late, with shows depicting the hi-octane escapades of burly men with magnificent facial hair popping-up on the telly with the regularity of Peter Andre on ITV3. Timely, then, that Contraband director Baltasar Kormákur should return to his Icelandic roots to tell the alarming true story of one such burly man who swam three miles to shore in the freezing North Atlantic when his vessel sank. Then walked another couple miles to civilisation over rocks of extreme jagginess with no shoes on. Eat your heart out, John McClane.

Ólafur Darri Ólafsson brings quiet stoicism and sadness to the role of sole survivor and reluctant hero, Gulli, while Kormákur demonstrates great visual flair without technique ever intruding on content. The ship’s doomed crew are briskly introduced and the harshness of their surrounds and employment beautifully constructed with a pallid, frozen aesthetic. As a portrait of a lifestyle alien to many and the extraordinary resourcefulness of a very simple man, The Deep provides keen insight and empathy. [Chris Fyvie]