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Head Above Water

1996 · 92 min

A wry, tense black comedy that keeps you guessing as a simple cover-up spirals into absurd, darkly funny chaos.

Directed by
Jim Wilson
Genres
Comedy, Thriller
Tagline
Murder just became a water sport.
Overview
Judge George brings his young wife, Nathalie, to a remote island for a vacation. But while George accompanies their only neighbor -- Nathalie's childhood friend Lance -- on a fishing trip, Nathalie spends time with her ex, Kent. When Kent ends up dead the next morning, Nathalie tries to hide the evidence before her husband gets home. After the body is found, the events of the previous night unravel, with unexpected revelations.

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Directed by
Jim Wilson
Genres
Comedy, Thriller
In your watch list

How it feels

Written by AI. It can be wrong.

Tone
  • darkstrength 2 of 3
  • absurdstrength 2 of 3
  • tensestrength 2 of 3
  • cynicalstrength 1 of 3
Pacing
brisk, 3 of 4, from slow-burn to relentless
Attention
engaged, 3 of 4, from background-friendly to demanding
Themes
  • deception
  • betrayal
  • guilt
  • addiction
  • survival
Places
  • single country house
  • sea
  • small town
Era
contemporary
Audience
adult
Form
  • twist ending
Content intensity
  • Gore mild
  • Language mild
  • Violence strong
  • Sex mild
All scales, 0 to 10
Scales, 0 to 10
ScaleValue0 to 10
Action3
Horror3
Humour5
Realism6
Romance2
Tension7
Darkness6
Complexity5
Emotional weight4

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Cast

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Streaming data from JustWatch.TMDB

Details

Genres
comedy, thriller
Directed by
Jim Wilson
Written by
Theresa Marie
Starring
Harvey Keitel, Cameron Diaz, Craig Sheffer, Billy Zane, Shay Duffin
Music
Christopher Young
Cinematography
Richard Bowen
Runtime
92 min
Country
United States of America
Languages
English

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