The Sea review - tender fishermen's boat-based tale of forbidden love far from prying eyes

The Sea review highlights Barry Ward’s Welsh drama as a tender, remote-north-Wales story of forbidden love away from community scrutiny. Written and directed by Helen Walsh, the film centers on Jack, a middle-aged co-owner of a mussel business who faces declining ability to do hard labor and mounting family pressures. Jack’s brother Dyfan, played by Celyn Jones, is described as quarrelsome, while Jack’s wife Maggie (Liz White) is concerned about their son Tom (Henry Lawfull) and his girlfriend Lois (Leisa Gwenllian). Tom’s associates harass local fisherman Bernie (Danny Webb), who hires an itinerant deckhand, Daniel (Lorne MacFadyen). The narrative turns when Jack and Daniel meet and begin a passionate affair aboard Bernie’s small fishing boat, using a cruising spot near a deserted tin mine. The review frames Jack’s suppressed identity—whether gay or bisexual—as existing alongside his outward life for decades, with the romance developing at sea, far from the disapproval of their community.