Married to Maggie for over half his life, Jack works on the mussel beds in North Wales alongside his younger brother, Dyfan, and Dyfan’s three sons.
Jack has always assumed that his own boy, will join the family business on leaving school but Tom’s resistance to follow in his footsteps creates familial tension. Tensions are further inflamed by the arrival of an itinerant deckhand, Daniel, who makes known his feelings for Jack.
In this remote, rural community, Jack is faced with an impossible dilemma. On The Sea is a beautiful, sensual and at times, tragic exploration of masculinity, place and desire.
The Garden Cinema View:
God's Own Country meets The Outrun by way of Ken Loach in Helen Walsh's sophomore film about repressed queer desire blooming through the cracks of a small Welsh fishing community.
Although Walsh's examination of tradition versus personal freedom is well-trodden ground, the depth of Barry Ward's (Jimmy's Hall) and Lorne MacFadyen's performances - and the humanity of Walsh's own script - make for a moving watch.
As with The Outrun, the third protagonist is the location itself: the evocative, foggy wilderness of North Wales coast, beautifully interpreted by director of photography Sam Goldie.
