Jeri Jacquin

Coming to theatres this Friday from director Alex Parkinson and Focus Features is the true story of the men who live dangerously on their LAST BREATH.

Off the coast of Scotland in the North Sea, a ship takes divers Chris Lemons (Finn Cole), David Yuasa (Simy Liu) and veteran Duncan Allcock (Woody Harrelson) to replace a section of pipeline 300 feet down into the darkness of the ocean. Chris immediately tries to bond with David but land smack up against an emotional wall. The three men get into a diving bell as the seas above are rough from a storm.

The sea is thrashing the boat with 18-foot waves but Chris and David, tethered with an umbilical, are at the bottom beginning their 6-hour work underwater. What they done know is that the ship’s stabilizers stop working and it starts to drag the diving bell and the divers. Chris becomes entangled and the tether breaks. Panicking, David calms Chris saying that he will come back for him! Returning to the diving bell, the clock is ticking as Chris is running out of oxygen.

Commanding the ship is Captain Andre Jenson (Cliff Curtis), with the help of Hanna (MyAnna Buring), Craig (Mark Bonnar) and Mike (Josef Altin), do everything possible to get the boat back to where Chris is, including rebooting the ships systems. They each do what they can to bring Chris home as time is running out and they are not going to leave him behind!

Cole as Chris is a young man who cherishes time with his girlfriend but still loves to dive. Happy to meet up with Duncan, he is equally happy to meet the legendary David. Showing him respect, he wants to get the job done. Cole is sweet, charming and equally frightening in the role of a man who has no time to spare. I’ll keep what happens to myself so you can be just as surprised. Liu as David seems to have a hard outer shell which amuses veteran Duncan but when it comes to the chaos, he digs deep. Liu gives his character strength when he needed it the most. Wonderfully done.

Harrelson as Duncan loves what he does and has a close friendship with Chris. He knows what needs to be done and when it falls apart, he is the go-between from the diving bell to the ship up top. I adore Harrelson in roles like this as the solid but somewhat quirky man in charge. Curtis and Buring are in control of the ship and make unusual decisions to save one man. Bonnar as Craig tries everything to stay in contact with the diving bell and Altin as Mike does a little creative splicing to get their ship back.

Other cast include Connor Reed as Andrew, Nick Biadon as Stuart, Riz Khan as Kirk, Aldo Silvio as Brad, Kevin Naudi as Alex, Claudiu Baciu as Paul, Brett Murray as Nick, and Muhammad Arnini Bin Ariffin as Jun.

Focus Features’ mission is to make a lasting impact on global audiences by creating the home for artists to share diverse, distinctive stories that inspire human connection. Focus Features is part of NBCUniversal, one of the world’s leading media and entertainment companies that brings entertainment and news to a global audience. For more of what they have to offer please visit www.focusfeatures.com.

LAST BREATH is based on the 2019 documentary of the same name that was done by Parkinson and Richard da Costa. The incident happened on September 19, 2012.

I am a huge fan of true stories and even more fascinated by those who do jobs I either never heard of or know very little about. Divers repairing pipeline 300 feet under water for up to 10 hours is absolutely astounding. Director Parkinson says of the film, “The story is about the emotional pull. If you were in that situation, you would want the people around you to do the same for you. That is the uplifting nature of the film.”.

It’s true, the film shows the goal of every person involved, to get to Chris. They do things that are not either usual or by the book yet, they push what is necessary and that makes all the difference. From an unforgiving sea to the darkness of the deep, LAST BREATH is just as fast paced as the time in our heads ticking by.

The underwater scenes are frightening and well done so kudos to the cinematographers for that. The fear and sadness of each person on the screen is enough to get a sniffle out of me. Yet, when they kick into high gear, so did my emotions as I realized I was sitting up to the edge of my seat. That translates into a fantastic movie going experience so leave your thalassophobia at home and hit the theatres this Friday.

In the end – make every breath count!

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