Islands

The volcanic gods give off troubling tremors in German director Jan-Ole Gerster’s overlong but accomplished psycho-thriller set in the baked surrounds of the Canary Islands where everyone appears half-zonked.

Certainly that’s the case for British tennis coach Tom (Sam Riley) who spends his days indulging sporty types on the courts in the Fuerteventura luxury resort while his nights are spent drink and drug fuelled at the local dance club the Waikiki, with the occasional hook-up with flirty women. He’s always turning up late for his clients and seems to have no real friends, apart from a few select acquaintances in the local community including a policeman, Jorge (Pep Ambròs), and Raik (Ahmed Boulane) and Amina (Fatima Adoum), who are selling up their farm and camels and moving back to Morocco.. His unease isn’t helped by the fact that nearby Lanzarote may be about to erupt.

When Stacy Martin’s Anne Maguire arrives at the resort with her seven-year-old son Anton (Dylan Torrell) and his father Dave (Jack Farthing), his interest and curiosity are whetted and he does them a favour by getting an upgrade to their room from one over the bin store to a suite with an ocean view. They become closer over dinner at a local restaurant that Tom has recommended and the next day they’re off on a sight-seeing tour of the island, including barren vistas and dank and dark caves.

The day out is followed by another convivial dinner at his friends’ farmhouse but by this time the cracks in the marriage are beginning to show as they reveal their struggles to have a second child. Meanwhile Anne seems to be in classic femme fatale mode and Tom is an easy target. When Anne heads off early to bed, the two men go out on the town - which means the Waikiki club, although Tom seems a rather reluctant partygoer. Meanwhile Dave has become seriously tanked up and reveals his envy of Tom’s freedom and lack of ties. The two become separated after Dave disappears into the melée of assorted surfer chicks while Tom heads back to the hotel and collapses on a lounger.

So far so White Lotus tinged with a touch of Triangle Of Sadness, but then the film engages its thriller gear after Dave fails to return, and a search is mounted when a Madrid senior detective arrives on the scene to uncover all kinds of inconsistencies in the wife’s testimony about the events of the night before. Both Anne and Tom seem to have become potential suspects as the police go about their business.

The narrative in the last part begins to drag as the set-up is laid for a conclusion that pushes the boundaries of probability. The actors, however, own their characters with considerable skill which helps to paper over any deficiencies in the script, with Riley in particular as a thoroughly dissolute individual who has no idea where he is headed, and Stacy Martin as Ann hinting at the wife’s growing attraction for the loner, as opposed to the familiarity of her husband’s dubious escapades, as well the stresses associated with his inability to father another child.

Gerster keeps the tensions bubbling, along with enough surprises to sustain audience expectations, although the big reveal emerges as a tad underwhelming.

Reviewed on: 13 Aug 2025