Film Review: Shouting at the Sea
by Karen Pecota

Benjamin Verrall, UK, 2024

Filmmaker Benjamin Verrall creates a relatable atmosphere when two school friends Katherine (Maddie Rice) and Joe (Harry Michell) reconnect in the coastal town of Hastings, where they grew up in his latest short film SHOUTING AT THE SEA.

Verrall presents beautiful coastal waters and the constant rumblings of the Sea as his backdrop to set a tone for Katherine and Joe to lean into their past, present, and future. Verrall describes it as, “The ever-present sea narrates a tale of memory as the two confront their past, belonging as they share who they’ve become, and vulnerability with a conversation that tore them apart.”

Katherine and Joe have a free day to spend visiting old familiar hangouts before each must head back to the lives they chose after school days. The two enjoy sharing memories of the days gone by with each passing hour, and as the day draws closer to an end a more serious conversation transpires.

Katherine is happy and successful but has questions she needs to confront with Joe. Ever-present is the voice of the Sea that speaks of a life that has an ebb and a flow—waves crashing and saltwater sizzling ever so silently. Joe doesn’t feel as fulfilled as Katherine due to family obligations, but he still has dreams to pursue.

The two settle into their adulthood and share a situation of regret and the feelings that surrounded it from their teenage years. A misunderstanding that could have made their friendship stronger if they had only been more mature. To shout at the Sea was what Katherine and Joe decided to do with their words in order to let a heartfelt reconciliation set their friendship on a new path forward.

A wonderful visual of friendship Verrall uses the presence of the Sea and concludes that SHOUTING AT THE SEA is, “A metaphor for the forces, internal and external, that shape and reshape our lives.”