RottenTomatoes.com
Log In | Register | What is RT?
RT's Blu-ray HQ
  • Home
  • Movies
  • DVD
  • Celebrities
  • News
  • Critics
  • Trailers & Pictures
  • CommunityBeta
  • Box Office
  • | In Theaters
  • | Opening
  • | Upcoming
  • | Best Of
  • | Certified Fresh
  • | Showtimes
RT Search Powered by Google
help icon Enhanced RT
searches on Google
Click here to turn on enhanced search results from RT on your Google searches.
 
Movies / On DVD / The Sea Inside
The Sea Inside

Rate this Movie Help Icon

  • Write a Review
  • Read Reviews
  • Add to List
  • Get this Movie
  • Buy Poster External Icon
  • Visit Official Site External Icon
Bookmark and Share

The Sea Inside (2004)

  • T-Meter Critics
  • Top Critics
  • RT Community
  • My Critics
  • My Friends
  • DVD
83 %
Tomatometer
Template ImageTemplate Image

How does the Tomatometer work Help Icon

Reviews Counted:126

Fresh:105

Rotten:21

Average Rating:7.5/10

Consensus: Critics are hailing Alejandro Amenabar’s portrait of a man who chooses to die as Oscar-worthy, powerful and life-affirming, in its way. However, some have called it melodramatic and manipulative.

Rated: PG-13 [See Full Rating] for intense depiction of mature thematic material.

Runtime: 2 hrs 5 mins

Genre: Dramas

Theatrical Release:Dec 17, 2004 Limited

Box Office: $1,870,746

Synopsis: Javier Bardem gives a remarkable, unforgettable performance in Alejandro Amenabar's gripping drama about dying with dignity, THE SEA INSIDE. Thirty-five-year-old Bardem plays 55-year-old Ramon... Javier Bardem gives a remarkable, unforgettable performance in Alejandro Amenabar's gripping drama about dying with dignity, THE SEA INSIDE. Thirty-five-year-old Bardem plays 55-year-old Ramon Sampedro, a Galician who broke his neck as a young man and has spent more than a quarter of a century as a quadriplegic, confined to bed. Reflecting on his past and considering his future, he chooses to die, petitioning the courts for permission to be euthanized. His radical decision sets off controversy throughout Spain--as well as in his own house, where his family and friends all have different opinions on the fate he has chosen. While Ramon's father (Alberto Gimenez) and brother (Celso Bugallo) refuse to help him die, and his nephew, Javi (Tamar Novas), tries to understand his uncle's decision, Ramon is surrounded by women who virtually fight over him--Rosa (Lola Duenas), a single mother of two who visits him to talk about her difficult life; Manuela (Mabel Rivera), his sister-in-law who takes care of his daily needs; Gene (Clara Segura), who works for the Death with Dignity organization; and Julia (Belen Rueda, in a powerful film debut), a married lawyer with a secret of her own. Winner of the Grand Jury Prize at the 2004 Venice Film Festival, THE SEA INSIDE is a special film with marvelous acting, a strong soundtrack, a moving story, and an enchanting visual style that features poetic shots of the countryside as Ramon dreams he can fly. [More]

Starring: Javier Bardem, Belen Rueda, Lola Dueñas, Mabel Rivera

Starring: Javier Bardem, Belen Rueda, Lola Dueñas, Mabel Rivera, Celso Bugallo, Clara Segura, Tamar Novas, Francesco Garrido, Joan Dalmau, Jose Maria Pou

Director: Alejandro Amenábar

Director: Alejandro Amenábar
Screenwriter: Mateo Gil, Alejandro Amenábar
Producer: Fernando Bovaira, Alejandro Amenábar
Composer: Alejandro Amenábar
Studio: Fine Line Features

[See More Credits]

  • Trailers
  • Pictures
  • The Sea Inside Trailer
    >
1 of 1

See More Movie Trailers & Pictures

Get This Movie

Rent DVD
 
 

Click on the "ADD" button to put this movie into your Netflix queue.

 
 
Buy DVD
 
 
Release:

May 17, 2005

[DVD Details]
 
 
  • Academy Award nominee Javier Bardem (Before Night Falls) delivers a powerful and sensitive portrayal of a quadriplegic who fights to win the right to end his life with dignity. Based on a true story.
  • Source: Warner Home Video
  •  
     
     
     

    Reviews for The Sea Inside

    • T-Meter Critics
    • Top Critics
    • RT Community
    • My Critics
    • My Friends
    • DVD
     
     
    1 - 20 (sorted by source)
    Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 >> >|
    Arrange By:Fresh | Rotten | Comments | Name | Source | Date
     
     

    The combination of a deeply troubling issue, a powerful screenplay, deft direction and a bravura lead performance make this a memorable and moving film.

    Full Review Source: Apollo Guide | comment Comment
    01/29/05
    Brian Webster
    Brian Webster
    Apollo Guide

    The journey to death can be tremendously life-affirming.

    Full Review Source: Arizona Daily Star | comment Comment
    03/02/05
    Phil Villarreal
    Phil Villarreal
    Arizona Daily Star

    For whatever reason, it's an injustice that Bardem was not nominated for best actor.

    Full Review Source: Arizona Republic | comment Comment
    02/17/05
    Bill Muller
    Bill Muller
    Arizona Republic
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    ...an interesting and serious-minded failure.

    Full Review Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette | comment Comment
    02/18/05
    Philip Martin
    Philip Martin
    Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

    Bardem's Ramón 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.

    Full Review Source: Atlanta Journal-Constitution | comment Comment
    02/17/05
    Steve Murray
    Steve Murray
    Atlanta Journal-Constitution
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    Click to read the article

    Full Review Source: Austin Chronicle | comment Comment
    02/27/05
    Kimberly Jones
    Kimberly Jones
    Austin Chronicle
    N/R

    Click to read the article

    Full Review Source: AV Club | comment Comment
    09/26/05
    AV Club

    You can't watch the movie passively. Just try getting through it with a dry eye.

    Full Review Source: Bangor Daily News (Maine) | comment Comment
    02/16/05
    Christopher Smith
    Christopher Smith
    Bangor Daily News (Maine)
    N/R

    Click to read the article

    Full Review Source: BBC | comment Comment
    03/13/05
    BBC

    The Sea Inside is an inspiring, positively mesmerizing film. Javier Bardem, radiates within his character providing one of film's most powerful performances to date.

    Full Review Source: Blunt Review | comment Comment
    12/08/04
    Emily Blunt
    Emily Blunt
    Blunt Review

    It's such a repetitive and thinly constructed piece of filmmaking that the scope and complexity of Sampedro's case are turned to porridge.

    Full Review Source: Boston Globe | comment Comment
    12/17/04
    Wesley Morris
    Wesley Morris
    Boston Globe
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic
    N/R

    Click to read the article

    Full Review Source: Boston Phoenix | comment Comment
    03/02/05
    Boston Phoenix

    A film about death that is consistently brimming with life.

    Full Review Source: Boxoffice Magazine | comment Comment
    11/14/04
    Kevin Courrier
    Kevin Courrier
    Boxoffice Magazine

    The movie invites us to decide if we are pleased or not. I agree with Ramon that, in the last analysis, the decision should be his to make: to be or not to be.

    Full Review Source: Chicago Sun-Times | comment Comment
    12/17/04
    Roger Ebert
    Roger Ebert
    Chicago Sun-Times
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    Bardem accomplishes something extraordinary. Eschewing easy sympathy, he creates a real person, real pain.

    Full Review Source: Chicago Tribune | comment Comment
    12/16/04
    Michael Wilmington
    Michael Wilmington
    Chicago Tribune
    Top Critic Icon Top Critic

    Bardem is brilliant.

    Full Review Source: Christian Science Monitor | comment Comment
    12/17/04
    David Sterritt
    David Sterritt
    Christian Science Monitor

    The film is worth seeing, but only if you're prepared to set aside your aversion to its polemic in order to experience its compassion.

    Full Review Source: Christianity Today | comment Comment
    10/11/06
    Ron Reed
    Ron Reed
    Christianity Today

    Mar Adentro, assim como a própria vida de Sampedro, funciona principalmente para nos forçar a uma análise interior que pode revelar-se impiedosa e surpreendente.

    Full Review Source: Cinema em Cena | comment Comment
    02/17/05
    Pablo Villaca
    Pablo Villaca
    Cinema em Cena

    The subject of euthanasia is not likely to be better addressed or more cinematically presented. It's enough to make you feel guilty about the film's entertainment values.

    Full Review Source: Cinema Signals | comment Comment
    10/20/04
    Jules Brenner
    Jules Brenner
    Cinema Signals

    You want to like Ramon and what’s more you want Ramon to like himself.

    Full Review Source: CinemaBlend.com | comment Comment
    12/20/04
    Joshua Tyler
    Joshua Tyler
    CinemaBlend.com
     
     
    1 - 20 (sorted by source)
    Text View | 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 >> >|
    all

    Latest News for The Sea Inside

    July 11, 2006: Natalie Portman Will Do Naked in Next Film
    This one's for all you Portman pervs out there -- the erstwhile Queen Amidala is set to go fully nude in her upcoming pic "Goya's Ghosts," in which she plays the... More...

    February 17, 2006: Newell & Bardem Come Down with "Cholera"
    International acting stud Javier Bardem and well-rounded movie director Mike Newell are about to bring the Pulitzer Prize-winning "Love in the Time of Cholera" to the... More...

    December 16, 2005: London Movie Critics Present Their '05 Nominations
    Movie City News shares with us a press release from the London Film Critics Group in which their various nominations are announced. Keep in mind that the Brit crits use their... More...

    April 20, 2005: Bardem & Portman to Discover "Goya's Ghosts"
    Javier Bardem ("Before Night Falls") and Natalie Portman ("Closer") are in final talks to star in the bio-pic "Goya's Ghosts," says Variety. The... More...

    See All

    More DVDs

    Close
    Top Rentals
    Tomatometer Percentage Movie
    36% 36% Angels & Demons
    25% 25% Four Christmases
    68% 68% Funny People
    95% 95% Star Trek
    14% 14% The Ugly Truth

    More Rentals…

    New On DVD This Week
    Tomatometer Percentage Movie
    83% 83% Harry Potter and the H…
    67% 67% Public Enemies
    75% 75% Julie & Julia
    95% 95% The Cove
    85% 85% World's Greatest Dad

    More New Releases…

    RT On Current TV

    DIRECTV 358 | Comcast 107 | DISH Network 196

    What’s Hot On RT

    Disney Countdown

    Disney Countdown

    Look back on Disney's best animated movies!

    RT's Gift Guide

    RT's Gift Guide

    Give the best movies, gear, and more!

    Jason Reitman

    Jason Reitman

    The Up in the Air director's Five Faves

    The Blind Side

    The Blind Side

    Did you see it? Rate and review it here!

    Other News

    Close
    • Top Stories
    • Popular
    • Interviews
     
     

    Comments

     
     
    Top Stories
    Headlines Comments
      
    • Peter Jackson Talks Hobbit, LotR Blu-ray Source: Collider.com
    4
    • Woman Jailed for Filming New Moon Screening Source: Chicago Sun-Times
    5
    • McG Has Plans for Fifth and Sixth Terminator Movies Source: Gizmodo
    18
    • Spielberg Hops Away from Harvey Source: Variety
    22
    • Tarantino Could Have Directed Green Lantern Source: MTV
    24
    • Will Duvall be Gilliam's Don Quixote? Source: Collider.com
    26
    • No Hobbit Until 2012? Source: The Wrap
    22
    • Don't Hold Your Breath for Hancock 2 Source: HitFix
    42
    • Peter Berg Talks Battleship Source: CHUD
    2
    • Summit Ponders Twilight Finale Source: Variety
    162
    Popular
    Headlines Comments
      
    • Total Recall: Natalie Portman's Best Movies
    79
    • Five Favorite Films with Jason Reitman
    55
    • Critics Consensus: Everybody's Fine Is Just OK
    50
    • 10 Horrifically Profitable Films
    46
    • Sundance 2010: RT's 10 Most Anticipated Movies
    41
    • Five Favorite Films with Jesse Ventura
    40
    • Weekly Ketchup: Tron Team to Remake The Black Hole
    37
    • Awards Tour: National Board of Review Winners List!
    28
    • Friday Harvest: Iron Man 2, Harry Potter, and more!
    24
    • RT on DVD & Blu-Ray: Terminator Salvation and a Smithsonian Battle
    22
    Interviews
    Headlines Comments
      
    • Director Ruben Fleischer Talks Zombieland
    2
    • "I Don't Hate Women": Lars von Trier on Antichrist
    17
    • Eric Bana talks Love the Beast - RT Interview
    12
    • Fight Club Sound Designer Reflects on Film's 10th Anniversary
    23
    • James Schamus talks Taking Woodstock - RT Interview
    8
    • John Hurt Talks Harry Potter, Quentin Crisp and Alien - The RT Interview
    15
    • Terry Gilliam Talks Doctor Parnassus
    22
    • Wes Anderson Talks Fantastic Mr. Fox - RT Interview
    9
    • Wolverine Creator Len Wein Talks About the Film
    28
    • Gavin Hood Talks Wolverine; Possible Sequel
    30
     
     

    Sponsored Links

    Around The Network

    • The Sea Inside at Rotten Tomatoes
    • The Sea Inside at IGN
    • The Sea Inside at AskMen

    Fresh Links

    Featured
    History of Disney Animation
    History of Disney Animation External Link

    MSN Movies offers a little background on the success of Disney Animation.

    90 Years of Screen Vampires
    90 Years of Screen Vampires External Link

    TIME takes a look back at the history of vampires on film.

    Virtuoso Vistas of Lovely Bones
    Virtuoso Vistas of Lovely Bones External Link

    Techland examines the visual splendor of Peter Jackson's upcoming film.

    Recent Headlines as TV Movies
    Recent Headlines as TV Movies External Link

    AOL put together a list of 10 recent news items that would be perfect as TV Movies.

    The Death of Original Thought
    The Death of Original Thought External Link

    Hollywood.com's C. Robert Cargill explores how remakes and reboots have warped our thinking.

    Promos
    Follow RT on Twitter
    Follow RT on Twitter External Link

    Get the latest Tomatometer updates on upcoming movies!

     
     
    About| Site Map| Help| RT To Go| Contact Us| Critics Submission| Linking to RT| Licensing| Movie List| Games| Celebs List| Newsletter
    IGN Logo

    IGN.com | GameSpy | Comrade | Arena | FilePlanet | GameSpy Technology
    TeamXbox | Planets | Vaults | VE3D | CheatsCodesGuides | GameStats | GamerMetrics
    AskMen.com | Rotten Tomatoes | Direct2Drive | Green Pixels


    By continuing past this page, and by the continued use of this site, you agree to be bound by and abide by the User Agreement.
    Copyright 1998-2009, IGN Entertainment, Inc. About IGN | Support | Advertise | Privacy Policy | User Agreement | Subscribe to RT's XML feed! IGN RSS Feeds
    IGN's enterprise databases running Oracle, SQL and MySQL are professionally monitored and managed by Pythian Remote DBA
    Certain product data ©1995-present Muze, Inc. For personal use only. All rights reserved.