"Sinking"

7 December 2021

8 mins 21s

Alone in the dark.

This slow-burning piece of work for Women’s Aid is a deft study in loneliness and suffering. Rose (Emma Nihill) lives with her husband in the countryside, with her idyllic surroundings contrasted with an ugly, paralysing homelife.

Viewers only sees glimpses of the husband (Ben Star), but Rose's reactions and gestures tell so much more. When a guest asks how the move has gone, she turns to him first before answering. The savage aftermath shows even acts like this do little to satisfy her abuser.

Even moments of 'respite' are tough to watch, like a jog that will ultimately take her home and a soak in the bath with bruises on show. The consummate photography and grade may please the eye, but director Shaun James Grant ensures that the plight of Rose and women like her dominates.

UK

Charities