The Sea Inside is about Spaniard Ramón Sampedro, who fought a 30-year campaign to win the right to end his life with dignity. It is the story of Ramón’s relationships with two women: Julia a lawyer who supports his cause, and Rosa, a local woman who wants to convince him that life is worth living.
Ultimately, this is one man's story, told with great empathy, and Amenabar deserves great credit for lifting the film above the soap-opera sentimentality into which it could have easily fallen.
– Moira MacDonald,
Seattle Times,
4 Feb 2005
fresh:
Bardem's Ramon is such a vital life force, it's all the more bittersweet to watch him fight to leave a world that would be much emptier and sadder without him in it.
– Steve Murray,
Atlanta Journal-Constitution,
17 Feb 2005
fresh:
For whatever reason, it's an injustice that Bardem was not nominated for best actor.
– Bill Muller,
Arizona Republic,
17 Feb 2005
fresh:
If ever there was a film that deserved to get the proverbial bump from Oscar, this is it. Rarely has any film so focused on death felt so vibrantly alive.