Reviewing "Sea Fever": A tense isolation horror film evoking "The Thing" in the best way possible

Sea Fever is a horror film directed by Neasa Hardiman, starring Hermione Corfield, Connie Nielsen and Dougray Scott. Corfield plays Siobhan, a student studying the behaviors of deep sea animals, who joins a crew of fishermen to have the opportunity to dive into the sea and study creatures in the ocean. A mysterious... thing soon ensnares the boat and a strange algae-like substance begins causing disturbing trouble for the crew.

The film tales a lot of cues from John Carpenter's The Thing, being set in an isolated location, a ship at sea, and featuring an infection that, while less overtly malevolent than the earlier film's titular Thing, is sure to strike a chord with modern-day viewers thanks to its emphasis on quarantine paralleling the anxieties of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The performances are very good, and honestly exceeded my expectations. I had only seen Hermione Corfield in Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation previously, where she played a bit part. This film proved that she can comfortably carry a lead role, and in this film her character Siobhan is a Ripley-esque fiercely independent female lead role, but she is also a scientist with the right knowledge to deal with the danger the crew is facing. Therefore, her decisions clearly drive the plot forward as she takes charge of the situation to attempt to understand and contain the damage the algae-like substance is causing. Connie Nielsen is also a standout, being the serious, no-nonsense captain of the ship who has her priorities aligned differently than Siobhan's.

That difference in priority and understanding therefore forms the central conflict between the various characters on the ship. Siobhan, being a rationally-inclined scientist who initially doesn't feel welcome on the ship and started out meek and mild, is more concerned with understanding and containing the mysterious infection, while the other people on the ship are more concerned with getting to shore so those infected can receive care from hospitals, a course of action that Siobhan vehemently opposes due to her worry that the infection will spread uncontrollably.

The film is a remarkably tense and surprisingly gory body horror film, and is also a standout example of minimalism at its finest, with the occasional visual special effect being lovingly rendered. It is also a very good example of a cosmic horror story codified by the works of H.P. Lovecraft, with some unknowable force causing great trouble, perhaps even unintentionally, and all the protagonists can do is delay the catastrophe as best as they can. All in all, a fantastic movie with good performances and a plot filled to the brim with tension and fear.

Score: 9/10