“This is The Virginia Jean with an SOS call, over” – Our Man
Number of Times Seen – 2 (29 Dec 2013 and 3 Apr 2014)
Link to original review – Here
Brief Synopsis – A man is lost at sea when his ship gets damaged and must find a way to survive the elements and get back home safely.
My Take on it – Much has been written about this movie, some of it great and some of it not so great.
The debate usually deals with the fact that we don’t know anything about the main characters life and how he got into this particular predicament.
I’m a firm believer that when watching a movie, we need to take what they tell us and not try to understand what they don’t because it apparently isn’t very important to the story.
That’s very true in this movie because it doesn’t matter how “Our Man” got to where he did, the important thing is what he does when he is in that situation.
It doesn’t matter what boating or sailing experience he has and it also doesn’t matter if he makes mistakes, he isn’t meant to be the perfect sailor because if he was, they wouldn’t have been able to make a movie with only one character who speaks to no one for the entire 100 minute runtime.
Robert Redford was amazing in this movie and I think he truly was robbed of an Oscar nomination. Not many actors can act like he did for so long while only having to interact with nature.
The cinematography is amazing here, there are lots of shots from under the water and some great ones of the horizon and the vast sea showing “Our Man” hope and despair at the same time.
What I loved the most about this movie tho above all is the ambiguous ending. Not many movies can get away with doing something like that and still feel completely perfect.
Due to the fact that this movie unfortunately was released in close a proximity to Gravity (2013), part of the magic is lost since many people deem a movie about an astronaut trying to return to Earth to be more compelling than a movie about a man stranded at sea.
Both of these movies are my favorites of 2013 and I don’t think one needs to think of them as being so similar, because they both deal with similar situations but in completely different ways.
Bottom Line – Excellent movie that shows how a normal man will do all that he can to survive a life threatening ordeal. There are moments of despair and moments of hope throughout. Amazing ambiguous ending. Highly Recommended!
Rating – Oscar Worthy (no change from original review)
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MovieRob 
Redford was so great here. Shame that he didn’t get a nomination. But oh well. Tough year I guess. Good review Rob.
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yep, big shame, but them’s the breaks as they say. In some ways I think his performance here was better than all the nominees and perhaps his best role ever. He really showed how amazing an actor he can be here.
Thanks for commenting Dan!
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Nice job, Rob! I really enjoyed this film and agree with your perspective regarding the more ambiguous overtones about the story and material. What really counts was Our Man and his predicament and how the way the story unfolded defined him. Redford was stunning here. Oh and that ending! Just epic on so many levels and so open to interpretation.
I may give this movie another watch, sooner than later.
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Thanks Vic!
I think I liked it even more during my second viewing.
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