Rent The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea (1976)

Dark Romance - The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea review by GI

A dark, gothic styled romance that has a horror film vibe. Starring Sarah Miles, who was a significant 60s and 70s actor, as Ann, a woman riven with grief over the death of her husband four years earlier and the struggle of bringing up her moody, adolescent son Jonathan (Jonathan Kahn) without the help of a husband. She's lonely but lives in a large house on the Devon coast and runs a successful antiques business. Jonathan is under the control of a sadistic school bully who initiates him in causing cruelty to animals. When Ann begins a passionate affair with an American sailor, Jim (Kris Kristofferson) she finds love and happiness but Jonathan, increasingly disturbed especially as he watches their lovemaking through a hole in the bedroom wall, begins to resent Jim. A story of sexual awakening and forbidden passions. The children in this film, especially the sadistic bully (Earl Rhodes), who controls Jonathan and four other boys of their 'gang', are the dark heart of this film as they witness adult things they cannot understand. The bully hints at being the victim of sexual abuse at home as they embark on a ritualistic plan. The film has a feel of dread mostly portrayed through Jonathan who embodies the cinematic evil child persona, all smiles but malevolent looks like Damien from The Omen (1976). This is an interesting film worth seeing for Miles vulnerable and on-the-edge of breakdown performance.

Unusual - The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea review by SB

This film from the mid-70s has in a sense aged well, in that it could easily be much more recent. Based on a Japanese novella , it is about the clash between two opposing forces: on one hand the romance between a widow and a sailor who has grown tired of the ocean he once loved and now seeks domestic bliss, and on the other the disgust felt at this by the woman's teenage son, who has at first worshipped the sailor not only as a father replacement, but also, in the stirrings of his own sexuality, gloried in the sailor's strength and body when he (and we) spy on his mother surrendering herself to the sailor.

When the sailor ceases to be a Superman by revealing himself as just like other men, he is condemned as inadequate like all other adults - and the son has friends, led by 'the chief', to administer sentence. The parallels with other ways in which adults demean themselves to live in the world are evident.

The film is attractively set in an English coastal town (actually Dartmouth) and quite well made technically, of its time. Kriss Kristofferson is a little limited both by the role and his acting abilities while Sarah Miles plays her usual fey woman. The most interesting performance, in more ways than one, is Jonathan Kahn's as the son. Not a film for those squeamish about cruelty to animals.

Rather pretentious arty 1979 almost-horror film based on a story by Japanese author Mishima - The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea review by PV

Gosh well, this is apparently from a story by gay nationalist Japanese writer MISHIMA - so maybe watch the 1980s film of that name first to get it more, as he was a literary author, some would say pretentious and all about ideas.

Totally unbelievable story and characters too, esp the CHIEF boy. remined me of a Graham Greene short story (and TV film) The Destructors. Or maybe Lord of the Flies (the old film is MUCH better).

Made in 1976 the same year as The Omen which does nasty child much better! Also the same time as JAWS.

I disliked the scenes of animal torture BUT the credits assure us no animals were harmed.

I liked the nice scenes of Devon.

Borderline horror movie and a tad odd.