Performance & Direction: Fire at Sea Review
Last updated: January 21, 2026
Quick Verdict: Hit or Flop?
Is Fire at Sea (2016) worth watching? According to our cinematic analysis, the film stands as a HIT with a verified audience rating of 6.6/10. Whether you're looking for the box office collection, ending explained, or parents guide, our review covers everything you need to know about this Documentary.
Cast Performances: A Masterclass
The success of any Documentary is often anchored by its ensemble, and Fire at Sea features a noteworthy lineup led by Samuele Pucillo . Supported by the likes of Mattias Cucina and Samuele Caruana , the performances bring a palpable realism to the scripted words.
Performance Analysis: While the cast delivers competent and professional performances, they are occasionally hampered by a script that leans into familiar archetypes.
Final Verdict: Is it Worth Watching?
In summary, our editorial assessment of Fire at Sea (2016) is mixed. With an audience rating of 6.6/10, it stands as a highly recommended experience for genre enthusiasts.
Story & Plot Summary: Fire at Sea
Quick Plot Summary: Fire at Sea is a Documentary film that presents a compelling narrative that engages viewers from start to finish. This summary provides a scannable look at the movie's central conflict and narrative structure.
Ending Explained: Fire at Sea
Ending Breakdown: Fire at Sea concludes its story with a mix of closure and open interpretation. The finale presents its approach to documentary resolution.
The conclusion addresses the core thematic questions, offering viewers material for post-viewing discussion.
Ending Analysis:
- Narrative Resolution: The story concludes by addressing its primary narrative threads, providing closure while maintaining some ambiguity.
- Character Arcs: Character journeys reach their narrative endpoints, reflecting the film's thematic priorities.
- Thematic Payoff: The ending reinforces the documentary themes established throughout the runtime.
The final moments of Fire at Sea reflect the filmmakers' creative choices, offering an ending that aligns with the film's tone and style.
Who Should Watch Fire at Sea?
Worth Watching If You:
- Enjoy Documentary films and don't mind familiar tropes
- Are a fan of the cast or director
- Want solid genre entertainment
Top Cast: Fire at Sea
All Cast & Crew →Where to Watch Fire at Sea Online?
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Fandango At HomeFire at Sea Parents Guide & Age Rating
2016 AdvisoryWondering about Fire at Sea age rating or if it's safe for kids? Here is our cinematic advisory:
⏱️ Runtime & Duration
The total runtime of Fire at Sea is 114 minutes (1h 54m). Ensuring you have enough time for the full cinematic experience.
Final Verdict
Analyzing the audience sentiment, IMDb rating of 6.6/10, and global collection metrics, Fire at Sea stands as a successful venture for the creators. It remains an essential piece of the 2016 cinematic year.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Fire at Sea worth watching?
Fire at Sea is definitely worth watching if you enjoy Documentary movies. It has a verified rating of 6.6/10 and stands as a HIT in our box office analysis.
Where can I find Fire at Sea parents guide and age rating?
The official parents guide for Fire at Sea identifies it as Not Rated. Our detailed advisory section above covers all content warnings for families.
What is the total runtime of Fire at Sea?
The total duration of Fire at Sea is 114 minutes, which is approximately 1h 54m long.
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Critic Reviews for Fire at Sea
**Multi-layered Mediterranean Sea tale.** This documentary film is not in detail like any normal documentary does, to highlight the rights and wrongs. Actually, it speaks less and reveals more through its pictures. So anybody can make their own narration watching this film. The filmmakers left that part empty for you the viewers to decide. But my advice for you if you want to try this, that don't expect it to be about the 'immigration' alone. This film was multi-layered. There are many angles of focus about different topics, but kind of all are connected which is the Mediterranean Sea. So the common thing in the film is the Sea that divides the two continents, Europe and Africa. This film sets around that region about the people who depended on it for the living, growing up and looking for the fresh life start. But the majority of those who saw it recognise only the refugees who cross the sea. That's wrong to label this film is about the refugees. Around 20-25 per cent of the film concentrated on that issue. Only about their struggle on their journey to the other side, but it reveals nothing on its root cause. If you ask me, I would say only one religion making all this mess in the middle-east, otherwise you won't see the western army in that region. Some of the clips, the real ones are really disturbing. I won't blame those people who took such risk to get the other side of the sea. Believe me, I'm not a nationalist, so I won't believe in borders and regions that divided over language and ethnicity base. But I do mind the religious. If that was eradicated from the earth's surface, particularly one that's causing all the trouble immediately, we can co-exist peacefully. That's the major issue here, but we're after temporary solution. The film does not say all this, but you will get the clear picture. > "The ships fired rockets and at sea. It was like there was fire at sea." For me this was an average film. I have seen the much better documentaries than this on various issues of the world. The filmmakers don't want to take sides, so they only revealed the truth by just following and making videos of life in and around the Mediterranean Sea. Like I meantioned earlier, some of the angles do not make any sense or difficult to understand its purpose. I don't know the others, but I have got plenty of questions about the film to ask the filmmakers. If you are like me, welcome aboard. It was the Italian entry for the 2017 Oscars and it did not make, but found a slot in the list of Best Documentary Feature. This is the first out of five from that category I have seen, so I don't know whether it wins the award or not, but as per the prediction made by film fanatics and critics, this is the frontrunner. Whatever the result would be, I'm not recommending it particularly the common people. Because the film fails to narrate the story which is very essential from the average peoples' perspective to get the message clear and loud. All one can get with this is only the outline on the very important issue at the moment. Remember how the David Attenborough's narration made to reach all the corners of the earth. Confusing over the purpose of the documentary, possibly misleading. Its like watching a news channel on the mute mode. Otherwise, this should have been one of the best of its kind. _5/10_
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This review has been verified for accuracy and editorial quality by our senior cinematic analysts.
This analysis is compiled by our editorial experts using multi-source verification and audience sentiment data for maximum accuracy.






