ON July 13, approximately 1,700 nautical miles from the Sumatra Straits, an unnamed sailor (Robert Redford) prepares to surrender his soul to the sea.

We glide back eight days to find the same sailor midway through a voyage across the Indian Ocean. His 39-foot yacht collides with a wayward metal container. The yacht’s hull is breached but the captain patches up his craft and continues his journey.

Mother Nature throws up a storm that batters the boat and leaves the sailor with dwindling food and water supplies. As sharks circle, the sailor must use celestial navigation to chart a course back to humanity via the nearby shipping lanes.

Written and directed by JC Chandor, whose debut Margin Call was a tautlypaced drama set on the floor of a Wall Street investment bank. Robert Redford has been burning bright on the big screen for more than 50 years and here, he delivers a mesmerising solo performance.

Chandor orchestrates action sequences with aplomb, contrasting the sound and fury of the storm with the eerily beautiful calm of fish moving beneath the yacht.