'Survive' Reviews: Film "gets off on the right foot, but it quickly becomes clear that Jardin doesn’t have the money to do much with the premise"

     On January 10, 2024, Samuel Goldwyn Films released 'Survive', which has earned predominantly positive reviews from critics, currently holding at 70% on Rotten Tomatoes at the time of this writing. "In SURVIVE, Julia and her loving husband celebrate their son's birthday on their boat in the middle of the ocean. When a violent storm nearly capsizes them, the family awakes in a desert land. Earth has undergone a tragic polarity reversal, draining water from the oceans. The family must race to safety before the water returns all while battling hungry creatures from the abyss that hunt for fresh flesh." The ensemble cast includes Émilie Dequenne, Lucas Ebel, Lisa Delamar, and Andreas Pietschmann. Read the full review round-up below.

    Jennie Kermode of Eye for Film says, "One of those films that’s always going to be at its best when watched in a group, this really packs in the action, with Dequenne’s intensely physical performance and Nicolas Errèra’s energetic score ensuring that it keeps its grip throughout." Adding, "We live in a world which is undergoing massive changes, and perhaps that’s what this kind of film, and those kind of games, really exist to prepare us for. Once things really get bad, there’s no time to think about the long term. With Survive, the less you think, the more fun you’ll have."

   Phil Hoad of Guardian notes, "This directorial pep, along with invested performances across the board, allows Survive to build a sense of family vulnerabilities that is rawer than the standard cheap audience-identification tactics usually used in blockbuster disaster movies." Continuing, "With a stark preference for visual over verbal storytelling, Jardin woozily milks this surrealistic canvas (filmed on location in Morocco) for dreamlike snapshots: their boat exploding in the wilderness, bats escaping a stricken private jet, a hammerhead shark in a watercourse. But he doesn’t settle just for that: Jardin also goes for vigorous camera moves – to the point of occasional effortfulness in wringing out fresh juice from familiar setups, like the wild-eyed “man with the harpoon” (Arben Bajraktaraj) who torments the family."

Photo by Mike Von on Unsplash

   Brian Orndorf of Blu-ray.com was less impressed, stating, "While Jardin is committed to following characters as they experience an unthinkable situation of self-preservation, his sense of upheaval could use some work, as the endeavor is missing a more intense appreciation of global ruin." Concluding, "“Survive” gets off on the right foot, but it quickly becomes clear that Jardin doesn’t have the money to do much with the premise. Tom’s family regains consciousness in the middle of dry land that was once the ocean, only understanding what’s happened after making contact with Nao (Olivier Ho Hio Hen), the submersible team leader who can offer shelter for two more individuals before the water returns. Parental duty kicks in, as Tom and Julia set out to make sure Cassie and Ben remain safe, encountering a series of survival challenges along the way. There’s growing thirst, a need for shelter, open wounds, and falling rocks, but perhaps most pressing is a violent stranger looking to claim the family’s resources. Questions about this development are mostly unanswered, but Jardin is primarily pursuing visceral highlights as the drifter threatens to kill everyone. “Survive” shows some surprising ruthlessness during this sequence, but it ends up becoming the last offering of suspense until the climax."