The Sea Inside (2004) review

This is not a movie, this is a cause. Amenábar, tired of twist endings, decides to film the life of a man (Javier Bardem) who has an accident after diving into the ocean, is left a paraplegic and realizes, after a lifetime of depending on others to live, that he wants to be able to take his own life and die with 'dignity,' which the government won't allow (boo! hiss!). After the first half-hour (or even before, if you're familiar with the real-life story it's based on) you'll know exactly where all of this is going, leaving only repetition and melodrama, both of which become tired fast. What's especially egregious is how Amenábar's under the impression that he's breaking new ground with this, as if this has never been discussed in the media (this country already went down the same road with the Terri Schiavo case). Yes, I know we should be allowed to die if we want. Spare me the lecture.