Netflix's "The Silent Sea" is quietly compelling sci-fi

[Melbourne Guy]

It's a locked box mystery set on the Moon, and while there are a few "Hmmm" moments for nuanced lovers of sci-fi (artificial gravity!), "The Silent Sea" is quite watchable if you're okay with slower moving plots and subtitles (there is English dubbing, it's not as enjoyable for me at least, as listening to the foreign language and reading the text).

https://www.netflix.com/nz/title/81098012

 

[Rive]

Gave it a shot, but bounced back when the whole 'sea levels are falling' thing popped up, right around five minutes in the first episode.

Maybe next time, with skipping the part about the setup.

 

[Melbourne Guy]

Yeah, the setup is a little over the top, @Rive, and while it remains a pivot point for the plot. It's not convincing, to be honest. But the space station sequences, which are where most of the action happens, are darkly compelling.

I am enjoying Bae Doona as Doctor Song Ji-an, she brings a distanced competence to her role as the science-comes-first foil to Joon Lee as Captain Ryoo Tae-seok, who is trapped by circumstances to follow his orders, but he's no dummy and he can see everything is not as it seems.

But as the setup is a recurring motif - especially via flashbacks - if you can't suspend that much disbelief, you're not going to enjoy it.

 

[Klystron]

It's a locked box mystery set on the Moon, and while there are a few "Hmmm" moments for nuanced lovers of sci-fi (artificial gravity!), "The Silent Sea" is quite watchable if you're okay with slower moving plots and subtitles (there is English dubbing, it's not as enjoyable for me at least, as listening to the foreign language and reading the text). {bolding added}

I cannot agree more concerning the enjoyment from listening to original language in 'foreign' films. English dubbing introduces many errors and misplaced references. Since I already enable subtitles to enhance dialogue, reading text while watching the action causes no hardship.

Subtitle quality varies; typically leaving out middle sentences in spoken paragraphs while supplying the gist; most notable for me listening to colloquial English and Spanish, occasionally with French and German. Subtitles often supply subtle censorship, not only with swearing or 'bad language', but also denying necessary connotations inherent in the original language.

As a current NetFlix subscriber I shall give "Silent Sea" a view. After watching "Star Trek" in its many incarnations, artificial gravity appears a natural concomitant of science fiction dramas.

 

[Melbourne Guy]

Subtitle quality varies

Speaking only English, @Klystron, I assume this but do not know it from my understanding of other languages, though your observation on swearing is spot on. Sometimes, you don't need to be a native speaker to know it's being said...yet the subtitles are mute or make it an innocuous word like "gosh" 😂

 

[Fervent Freyja]

But as the setup is a recurring motif - especially via flashbacks - if you can't suspend that much disbelief, you're not going to enjoy it.

I enjoyed it, but couldn’t understand why they just didn’t get Luna to bite the rest of the crew once they discovered that it would transfer immunity against the lunar water. I would have insisted that she bite me!

Moderator's note: spoiler added.

 

[Melbourne Guy]

I enjoyed it, but couldn’t understand why they just didn’t get Luna to bite the rest of the crew once they discovered that it would transfer immunity against the lunar water. I would have insisted that she bite me!

Probs should have wrapped that in a spoiler alert, @Fervent Freyja 😬

Which means, by rights, I have to wrap my reply to your question in one!

So, I guess they weren't initially worried about the lunar water touching them, because nobody was expecting the base to fill up with the stuff. Neither was I, to be honest, it was one of the many inexplicable aspects of the way the base worked. Also, just because being bitten provided Dr. Song immunity would not mean it worked on others. Or that some other side effect wouldn't happen. But I think the main reason was it just didn't occur to the others in the heat of events that they would need it.

 

[Fervent Freyja]

Probs should have wrapped that in a spoiler alert, @Fervent Freyja 😬

Which means, by rights, I have to wrap my reply to your question in one!

So, I guess they weren't initially worried about the lunar water touching them, because nobody was expecting the base to fill up with the stuff. Neither was I, to be honest, it was one of the many inexplicable aspects of the way the base worked. Also, just because being bitten provided Dr. Song immunity would not mean it worked on others. Or that some other side effect wouldn't happen. But I think the main reason was it just didn't occur to the others in the heat of events that they would need it.

Oops, sorry!