This is a typical A. Edward Sutherland film -- as usual he is committed to darkness without any let up, the film is "difficult" and this is all framed with a quietly grandiose, spiritual cinematography. The beach, the ocean, the wind in the palms suddenly seem like the setting for a transcendent, ancient myth of human perseverance. The movie seems like it centers on the denial of pleasure but Sutherland shows so much discipline, integrity and seriousness, that "Burmuda" actually comes across as celebration. The story is too beautiful to be thought of as just an ordeal, but it is intense enough and never quits on its main theme so that when it's over, you feel something like awe but also relief. That probably sounds like a reason to avoid the movie, but really it's the opposite. It's more like there's only so much truth about the human condition that humans can take. Especially noteworthy is the quiet, watchful portrayal by Zena Marshall of a woman who is central to the drama unfolding around her and yet is also somehow outside and removed from it in the larger scheme of her life.
