As she did in Antoneta Alamat Kusijanović's 2017 short, Into The Blue, Gracija Filipovic spends most of her Croatian compatriot's debut feature in a bathing suit. Indeed, she's often seen in the sea, as it's the only place where she can escape from the controlling father, Ante (Leon Lučev), with whom she goes diving each morning. The shot of a speared moray eel (from which the film takes its title) writhing in a bucket serves as a symbol for Julija's situation, as she's confined to the large but entombing beachside house that Ante hopes to swap for a luxury apartment in Zagreb if he can persuade old friend Javier (Cliff Curtis) to invest in a holiday resort project.
Kusijanović’s imagery isn't always so on the nose, however. As Julija learns that adults don't always play by the rules, the director and cinematographer Hélène Louvart use underwater sequences to place her in a state of suspended animation, while the simmering mood intensifies as Ante realises that his daughter is not only trying to use her growing awareness of her own allure to charm Javier, but also to compete with her mother Nela (Danica Curcic), whom she blames for her plight because she had turned down Javier's proposal in order to marry Ante.
Martin Scorsese's presence as executive producer and the Caméra d'Or win for best first feature at Cannes add to the kudos. As does the intensity of Filipovic's watchful performance, which reinforces the notion that Julija is trapped in a latter-day fairy tale. Yet, for all its visual prowess and atmospheric intrigue, this acute critique of boorish patriarchalism suffers from simplistic characterisation and some protracted and confusing action in the final reel. The faults lie more with the script, co-written by Frank Graziano, than Kusijanovic's direction, which is sufficiently assured to suggest great things could be in store.