"I wish You hadn't met Me. Then, You wouldn't be in this Mess." Adrift Review

Adrift

1/5

Directed by: Baltasar Komakur

Rated: PG-13

           Based on a true story: Tami Oldham (Shailene Woodley) and Richard Sharp (Sam Claflin) come from two different backgrounds, one from Tahiti and the other from Australia, but their common ground is their love for the water and each other. On a fateful voyage from Tahiti to California a storm wrecks their ship and sends their lives and their ship into disarray. After the storm, Tami wakes up and realizes she is too far from California to make it to shore on her broken boat. She will have to head for Hawaii, a rather tricky target reaching, especially when your ship has lost all forms of digital navigation. Will she survive, or will she die alone at sea? Who cares?
          Adrift is abysmal. Nearly every aspect of this film is not noteworthy, including Adrift's performances. Woodley portrays her intrepid survivor with a dwindling and unsure voice and a series of facial expressions all saying, "I can't do this. It's too hard." When she is not playing the role of survivor, she is making googly eyes at her boyfriend, Richard. While it is clear Woodley is making sure audiences know her character wants to be with Richard, Woodley is unable to portray if her relationship with Richard has depth. From her first meeting with Richard to her moments with him on the ship there is little to no discernible difference between how she feels about him. Claflin, however, does not help Woodley out, as he offers a less adequate performance. Claflin's few emotional displays include being happy and being concerned. Nearly every thing else in between is portrayed by a lifeless and vapid face. Other than being Tami's love interest, it seems as if Claflin's character has no other purpose for being in this movie. Whether his character were dead or living, it would not make a noticeable difference.
           In addition to Adrift's lifeless performances, this movie has a poorly constructed screenplay. This movie's dialogue is atrocious, and it is also relayed in a lack luster careless manner. An example of this is when Tami and Richard are quietly sitting in a cabin talking with each other, and then Tami calmly says, "Can I ask you a question? How'd your mother die?" Then Richard calmly answers the question, as if it does not greatly concern him. In addition to this, the way in which this movie plays out is tropic and cliche. There are two different stories plying out in Adrift, the story of survival and the story of how they fell in love. Both of these are bland. Tami does not have to struggle for survival on her disheveled boat, as anything she attempts to do she successfully does her second try. Most audiences will not feel inclined to root for her survival, because, like her love for Richard, it is never in question. Her relationship with Richard is played out through romantic outings at scenic Tahitian locations and through hollow private conversations between her and Richard. Both of these stories lack intrigue, and have even less impact due to their pacing. The survival story is interwoven with the love story, but it is not edited together in a way illustrating parallels or greater depth. Once the love story takes place on the boat, it can be difficult discerning love scenes from survival scenes, as Woodley's demeanor does not drastically differ between the two stories. Most audiences will feel the movie would be better if it played out chronologically, some audiences may not mind Adrift's back and forth nature, but either way Adrift's screenplay has little to no substance.
           Aside from Adrift's lifeless performances and lacking screenplay, this movie features scenes most audiences will find bizarre. The dialogue between characters can start to make audiences uncomfortable, and some audience members may release this discomfort through stifled laughter. There is a scene between Woodley's and Claflin's character where they partake in the consumption of peanut butter in a manner that can cause cringing. There is also a scene where Woodley is naked. She's on top of the boat and she's naked. Though nothing explicit is directly shown, the camera gets close. There is no given reason for Woodley's nakedness, nor does it progress the story. She's just naked for 30 seconds. This along with other moments make Adrift somewhat disturbing. Aside from Adrift's few interesting long take scenes, this movie is a tiresome experience that can cause some audience's minds to drift somewhere else.

Verdict: Adrift is abysmal, and it's lifeless performances, bland screenplay, off-putting dialogue, disorienting pacing and bizarre scenes make it a tiresome and somewhat disturbing experience.