Film Review: LAST BREATH (2025): Alex Parkinson’s Thriller is Moving and Tense but a Bit Frustrating as Well
Last Breath Review
Last Breath (2025) Film Review, a movie directed by Alex Parkinson, written by Mitchell LaFortune, David Brooks and Alex Parkinson and starring Woody Harrelson, Simu Liu, Finn Cole, Cliff Curtis, Mark Bonnar, MyAnna Buring, Josef Altin, Bobby Rainsbury, Nick Biadon, Riz Khan and Kevin Naudi.
Last Breath is a frustrating but captivating true-to-life new drama about three deep-sea divers who go on a mission gone awry. Directed by Alex Parkinson with a terrific sense of tension, Last Breath is the type of movie one simply can’t reveal the ending of because the whole movie rests on the elements of its conclusion. Is it predictable? If I told you the answer to that question, it could give away the surprises of the superb last 10 or 15 minutes of the picture.
Woody Harrelson stars as Duncan Allock, the aging diver who is ready for retirement. You’ve seen this type of character before. This latest mission could be his last and although he would like to work longer, he’s already put 20 years in. This film is really, at its core, about his younger, somewhat more wet-behind-the-ears colleague, Chris Lemons (Finn Cole). It is said the daring diving these men do makes their work among the most dangerous jobs in existence. I believe it. Simu Liu portrays Dave Yuasa, the third wheel who may just help Chris even in the most difficult of circumstances.
This movie opens in Scotland with the story of Chris and the love of his life, Morag (a well-cast Bobby Rainsbury). She wants him to be there with her, but he has to go to work and earn a living. Morag hopes that they can have a great life together. She yearns for his quick return. That wish gets very complicated when Chris is left to fend for himself during the midsection of the film as he ends up stuck many feet below the surface of the ocean. I won’t give away everything, but he comes damn close to experiencing a nightmare that may…well, I’ve said too much already.
Some supporting characters include Captain Andre Jenson (the perfect Cliff Curtis) who must make some difficult decisions when it comes to trying to save a certain character in the film’s life. Mark Bonnar efficiently plays Craig, the “Dive Supervisor” while the effective MyAnna Burin portrays 1st Officer Hanna who is also challenged immensely by the events that transpire throughout the picture.
Last Breath is surprisingly a very powerful movie. It’s also a tough challenge to watch, though, because of the devastating subject matter it so fearlessly takes on. One wonders why the divers and their superiors go to the lengths they go here to save a particular life. Especially when all hope seems to be gone. Thankfully, certain elements happened as they did but the film keeps the viewer on pins and needles all throughout wondering which way the characters will turn next in a race against the clock for another man’s survival. This can all become so nerve-wracking to watch that one may look away from the screen or shake his or her head in disbelief. Remember this is a true story! Keep telling yourself that as you watch the movie.
Harrelson is really good here even though he plays this role pretty much by-the-numbers in a certain respect. He’s such a talented actor he could have probably done this role in his sleep, but Harrelson’s winning charisma is important to the story and the actor acquits himself with class in a nice turn that takes his character through a series of wildly chaotic underwater events that culminates in a lot of emotions that are expressed by the veteran performer. Finn Cole is a tad bit better than Harrelson even though he has a much smaller role. Cole is also a winning, talented actor and his character has a lot of particulars that make us want to root for him. Simu Liu is simply OK in a role that required a bit more of a characterization than the screenwriters have created in the particular situations which are on-view here.
There are a number of intense and exciting sequences. A count is tracked as to how long a character is without oxygen, and it soon becomes edge-of-your-seat material that could have faltered in a less than capable director’s hands. Production values and music are solid. This film is handsomely mounted and tightly edited. Cole and Rainsbury have nice chemistry as well which keeps their relationship feeling relatable and moving over the course of the movie.
How much you enjoy Last Breath depends on how much you’re willing to handle watching the truly nerve-wracking events that unfold throughout the picture. We’re ultimately in good hands here and the movie will, without a doubt, hold one’s interest even if the viewer will wish that he or she never has to hold their breath under water as long as the possibilities that are suggested here. It’s a recommended picture overall.
Rating: 7/10
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