Mahalia Belo
On general release in UK cinemas US release to be announced
ACCORDING to , the UK’s largest water and wastewater company, parts of London experienced a month’s worth of rainfall in a single hour in July 2021, affecting over 2000 properties. And with estimating that several areas of the city will be below sea level by 2030, this poses a key question – are UK cities prepared for excessive flooding?
This question is echoed in The End We Start From, directed by Mahalia Belo and starring Jodie Comer. Adapted from the book of the same name by Megan Hunter, the film follows an unnamed character, Woman (Comer), who fights for survival while caring for her newborn baby when the UK is hit by excessive flooding.
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Since the beginning of 2024, the UK has experienced particularly stormy weather. In January, storms Henk, Isha and Jocelyn badly affected many parts of the UK, including the North, the Midlands and Northern Ireland. They also disrupted London, as the city saw high levels of rainfall that closed whole sections of the London Underground.
Hyped-up versions of crises such as these would form the premise of typical Hollywood blockbuster disaster films such as The Day After Tomorrow, or the somewhat lower-key British-Canadian film , in which the narratives revolve around the survival of a star-studded cast of protagonists and the general theme of escaping danger.
The End We Start From, however, brings a more grounded, everyday approach to the idea of surviving a natural disaster, by focusing on how ordinary people navigate the aftermath of a crisis. Whether it is through their immediate actions or how they adjust to an altered normality, Belo’s debut film explores the emotional turmoil such an emergency can create at an individual level – combined in the Woman’s case with the first exhausting months of motherhood.
Rather than have audiences immediately dropped into such a disaster, Belo and screenwriter Alice Birch slowly build the extent of the crisis in parallel with the Woman’s journey as a mother. The film teases the danger of excessive rainfall through one of its calmer and seemingly more mundane moments, until danger hits – quite literally – as the flood waters crash into the Woman’s home. Within the first 10 minutes, Belo effectively establishes the precariousness of the situation and the fear of what can happen on a rainy day.
The Woman’s hazardous journey evokes an underlying sense of terror about the unknown, especially when desperation and selfishness replace common decency and compassion. The changing situation forces the Woman to shed her naivety about human kindness, and – thanks to Comer’s gripping performance – she exudes frustration, despair and determination.
As the world currently adjusts to a post-pandemic reality, the idea of surviving such turmoil and remembering the “before days” will resonate with audiences. The supporting characters – such as those played by Katherine Waterston, Benedict Cumberbatch and Gina McKee – help to reinforce this concept, as some of them would rather remember their past while others would prefer to move on.
This offers the Woman the familiar moral dilemma of whether to risk everything or do nothing, leading the narrative in an empowering direction that sees her use her initiative to survive, rather than lean on others.
Belo creates an intimate portrayal of the Woman’s growing struggles while also incorporating sensitive external shots to convey the breadth of the crisis and its environmental impact.
For instance, the depiction of a flooded London, where water levels are nearly as high as an old-school double-decker bus (around 4.4 metres), is especially striking because it exposes clearly how woefully underprepared this version of the UK is in the event of such serious flooding – and the sheer enormity of what it would take to get the country back to normal.
Overall, The End We Start From has an intriguing concept at its core, one that it explores with great sensitivity and nuance. It also reinforces its female-driven narrative with a sense of hope and strength, anchored by Comer’s powerhouse performance.
Katie Smith-Wong is a film critic based in London
