Row Review – A Gripping, Tense, Psychological Thriller, A Must See

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Category: UK A&E, Lifestyle, Culture

Published on Wednesday, 13 August 2025 12:32

Written by Janet Walker

Row, from Kaleidoscope Entertainment, presents a riveting oceanic psychological thriller, as four crewmembers attempt to break the world trans-Atlantic rowing record only to confront the fierceness and drive of competition and the futility of man against nature.

The film begins with an overhead shot of a parachute connected to what looks like an empty racing shell, and then a pan of the bloody boat deck and two men, each tied up to other side. A woman, who we yet don't know, is kneeled in the hull holding a bloody knife. She is terrified. We then see this same woman, unconscious, hooked up to an IV, and a man, DCI Mackelly, played by Tam Dean Burn, attempting to gather information.

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With these three settings established, we return to the beginning when we meet the crew, Megan played by Bella Dayne, Lexi, played by Sophie Skelton, Daniel, played by Akshay Khanna. The effort begins with one slight hiccup Adam, played by Mark Strepan, who was originally the fourth on the team, broke his ankle and had to be replaced last minute by Mike, played by Nick Skaugen.

So, the row begins, two hours on two hours off, with Daniel, the crew chief desperate to break the record, demanding they row faster. Except for Mike, the team had been training for this grueling test of stamina, skill, endurance, and determination for some time. What they didn't plan on as they rowed from the UK to Ireland was the fierceness of the sea.

Soon they were facing massive waves, days of rain, and with the calendar available we see the first five days seems like a month. Megs and Lexi, who have been friends for more than ten years, began to realize that something was off when they couldn't find the hot water heater. Then they have a rudder malfunction, and Mike pulls a wad of plastic fishing line and rubber hair bands, but it burns out the technology.

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Daniel, we understand, desperately needs this win. We didn't know how far he would go to lighten the boat so they could travel faster. Soon, with everyone on deck, Lexi and Megs are counting the rations and realize they only have enough for nine more days. Daniel looks at everyone and says, "I guess we'll have to get there in nine days."

The tension begins to mount. Lexi is first to realize that Daniel sabotaged them. They begin to argue until he admits it. She is so angry that she hits him with an oar. Then as Lexi and Megs are rowing, the ballast seems off and when they discover why, it sets in motion a series of events that turn the expedition into a nightmare.

The voyage is told in flashback, as we understand we are reliving through the point of view of Megan, who somehow, and we don't know yet how she survived or who else may have survived also. As her memory slowly returned the horror of the voyage and each of the team's meltdown terrorizes her. What she doesn't realize is that her life now depends on remembering the horrors of the voyage.

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Row is a captivating, engrossing, gripping, psychological thriller.

The use of confined, tight, claustrophobic spaces causes the tension to mount, and as each of their lifelines are stripped from them, the futility and desperation overtakes them. The actors deliver exceptional performances and the heightened suspense and tension as each character embodies the role is palpable.

The cinematography captures the unexpected intensity of nature and the uselessness of man to fight against it, while also highlighting the increasing plastic contamination of the oceans and the ecosystem, and even includes a closeup of a gutted fish who had eaten fishing wire.

Row held its World Premiere at Raindance Film Festival, where it won Best UK Feature.  Row, an oceanic survival-thriller, opens exclusively in UK cinemas August 29, 2025. See it!

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Country: UK.

Language: English.

Runtime: 118 Minutes.

Director: Matt Losasso.

Producer: Nick Skaugen.

Executive Producer: Elizabeth Turner Fox.

Writers: Matthew Losasso, Nick Skaugen.

Cast: Bella Dayne, Nick Skaugen, Sophie Skelton, Akshey Khanna, Tam Dean-Burn, Mark Strepan, Melody Grove, Jenny Quinn, Joanna Roth.

Janet Walker is the publisher, founder, and sole owner of Haute-Lifestyle.com. A graduate of New York University, she has been covering international news through the Beltway Insider, a weekly review of the nation's top stories, for more than a decade.  A general beat writer/reporter and entertainment/film critic, she is also an accomplished news/investigative news/crime reporter and submitted for Pulitzer Prize consideration "Cops Conspire to Deep Six Sex Assaults" in the Breaking News Category and was persuaded to withdraw the submission. Ms. Walker has completed five screenplays, "The Six Sides of Truth," "The Assassins of Fifth Avenue," "The Wednesday Killer," "The Manhattan Project," and the sci-fi thriller "Project 13: The Last Day." She has completed the non-fiction narrative, "Unholy Alliances: A True Crime Story," and “Days, Times, Seasons, Events: A Collection of Poetry & Prose,” are available on Amazon. She is a member of the Los Angeles Press Club, the National Writers Union, and a former member of the International Federation of Journalists.