The ocean is already a wild, untamed space for those of us who can appreciate its dangerous beauty. This intensity would only be amplified by the loss of sight, but for the Australian surfer Matt Formston it is his reality and he is more than willing to live in it.
Formston’s impressive athleticism and his mentality against all odds take center stage Daniel Fenech‘S The Blind Seaan entertaining and emotionally charged documentary that celebrates his tenacity as a man navigating life as a husband and father as well as a world-class athlete, overcoming the “obstacles, not barriers” – as his father describes them – that life has thrown his way since he was diagnosed with macular dystrophy, which leaves him with three percent vision.
Formston has been crowned Para-Surfing World Champion four times, won gold and silver medals at the UCI Paracycling Track World Championships and represented Australia at the 2016 Rio Paralympics. To say he is ambitious would be an understatement, but it is a testament to his impressive career that for director Fenech, these achievements were not necessarily the driving force behind the film. It was Formston’s decision to take on the big waves in Nazaré, Portugal that really gave Fenech the jolt he needed, with the filmmaker clearly taking delight in documenting Formston’s ongoing devaluation of the expectations placed on him as a visually impaired person. He doesn’t care about societal norms!
The Blind Sea primarily celebrates Formston and his achievements – as it rightly should – and only when it delves into the technical aspects of his blindness and its relationship to the sighted does it become emotional. There is a tragic undertone to the proceedings and it goes without saying that the film could be too emotionally devastating had it dug deeper into his psyche, but on the other hand, The Blind Sea is so positively inspiring that we cannot take away its impact as a work of art that truly expresses what our bodies are capable of when we develop the right attitude.
Anyone who has surfed such waves in any capacity will have a better understanding of Formston’s abilities, and viewers who appreciate sports documentaries of all kinds will also have an immediate connection to him. But the overall storytelling aspect and poignant thread have an undeniable, universal appeal that should appeal to anyone who has a passion they have not been willing to give up because it is beyond their potential for others to see.
THREE AND A HALF STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
The Blind Sea is now showing in select cinemas across Australia. To find your local participating venue visit The Blind Sea’s official website here.
