When the sole survivor of an attempted North Atlantic crossing washes ashore, she must piece her memories together and face the terror of what happened far out at sea.
Director Matthew Losasso’s dramatic thriller “Row” wastes no time pulling you in. The film opens with a blood-stained boat washing up on the shores of Scotland with a barely conscious lone survivor named Megan (Bella Dayne). It’s a hell of an opening that immediately sets the stage for a slow-burn, psychological survival thriller that’s just as much about memory and trauma as it is about battling the elements.
The film tells the story of a highly ambitious crew as they attempt to break a world record by rowing across the Atlantic in under a month. The team is made up of Megan, her friend Lexie (Sophie Skelton), an overbearing skipper named Dan (Akshay Khanna), and Mike (Nick Skaugen), who was a last-minute replacement after Lexie’s boyfriend drops out due to injury. There’s instantly a ton of tension within the group, especially as almost everything than can go wrong does (from violent storms, sickness, broken equipment and potential sabotage). The mood grows darker and by the time Megan is found clinging to life in Scotland, everyone else is missing and presumed dead. Megan claims to have no memory of what happened, and she must try and piece together her fractured (and unreliable) memories to solve the mystery.
The film slows down quite a bit in its storytelling, taking its time while leaning into a more artsy, atmospheric style. The hook is strong enough to keep you pulled in from the very beginning, and the audience gets to see exactly what happened from Megan’s eyes as it is told through her hazy, trauma-filled memories.
Most of the story plays out on a tiny boat in the middle of the Atlantic, which is nerve-wracking in itself. The ocean feels endless and hostile, and the cramped, claustrophobic space makes every argument, every side-eye, and every shift in trust feel explosive. With food and water running low and the crew turning against each other, it becomes less about battling the elements and more about battling human nature.
The movie digs into paranoia, isolation, and how quickly trust can collapse when survival’s on the line. The tension builds steadily and by the time the crew is truly unraveling, it reaches the highest level of intensity.
SPOILER ALERT: The next paragraph includes some information that may be considered a minor spoiler. Please skip this paragraph if you’ve yet to see the film.
The ending is left frustratingly ambiguous, and that choice will probably divide viewers. Some will want a clear answer about what happened on the boat while others will appreciate that the film leaves room for interpretation. Personally, I liked that it leaned into the uncertainty because it fits the theme of memory, trauma, and truth being hard to pin down.
Blending physical danger with psychological unease, “Row” is a smart, atmospheric, and tightly made survival thriller. It looks great, feels authentic, and had me hooked the whole way through.
