movie review no limit

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No limit (2022), common sense media reviewers.

Intense, disturbing romantic drama has sex, drinking.

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Negative examples show how romantic relationships

Roxana models perseverance and courage in learning

Main cast all appear to be White. Many people of c

Violence is paired with sex once in a simulated se

See "Violence & Scariness." Bare breasts are s

Translated from French, "f--k," "s--t," "a--hole,"

Some diving equipment with Garmin logo.

Adults drink socially, sometimes to excess, with p

Parents need to know that No Limit is a dark, tense relationship drama in French with subtitles or dubbing, based on real events about a young woman and her mentor as she learns about the sport of no-limit diving. Several sex scenes show simulated sex with thrusting, grunting, and moaning. A woman's breasts…

Positive Messages

Negative examples show how romantic relationships with a power imbalance cause problems. Messages about working hard to achieve goals and success in sports are undermined by a messy relationship drama.

Positive Role Models

Roxana models perseverance and courage in learning how to free-dive. The whole dive team models communication and teamwork.

Diverse Representations

Main cast all appear to be White. Many people of color in minor roles and as extras.

Did we miss something on diversity? Suggest an update.

Violence & Scariness

Violence is paired with sex once in a simulated sex scene with choking, which appears to increase arousal. A past suicide attempt is described without details or gore. Brief glimpses of scars on wrists imply a suicide attempt. A character remembers his father beating his mother in the past. Lots of scary, tense atmospheres and characters in danger from a dangerous diving sport.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Violence & Scariness in your kid's entertainment guide.

Sex, Romance & Nudity

See "Violence & Scariness." Bare breasts are seen, as are thrusting, grunting, and moaning. The only other nudity is male bare buttocks, but several other sex scenes show thrusting, grunting, moaning, and kissing.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Sex, Romance & Nudity in your kid's entertainment guide.

Translated from French, "f--k," "s--t," "a--hole," "damn," "hell." Middle-finger gesture.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Language in your kid's entertainment guide.

Products & Purchases

Drinking, drugs & smoking.

Adults drink socially, sometimes to excess, with plot- or character-related consequences and some drunken behavior shown. Several adult characters smoke. Some background smoking.

Did you know you can flag iffy content? Adjust limits for Drinking, Drugs & Smoking in your kid's entertainment guide.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that No Limit is a dark, tense relationship drama in French with subtitles or dubbing, based on real events about a young woman and her mentor as she learns about the sport of no-limit diving. Several sex scenes show simulated sex with thrusting, grunting, and moaning. A woman's breasts and a man's buttocks are shown once each. Violence is paired with sex once in a simulated sex scene with choking, which appears to increase arousal. A past suicide attempt is described without details or gore. There's scariness and tension from characters in danger of blacking out and drowning and in cardiac arrest. Important characters die. Strong language translated from French includes "f--k," "s--t," and "a--hole." Adults drink socially, sometimes to excess with drunken behavior shown. Several adult characters smoke, and there's smoking in the background. To stay in the loop on more movies like this, you can sign up for weekly Family Movie Night emails .

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Community Reviews

• Parents say

There aren't any parent reviews yet. Be the first to review this title.

What's the Story?

NO LIMIT is the story, based on real events, of how a diving class changes the life of college student Roxana (Camille Rowe) forever. Ever since she was a little girl, Roxana has loved diving in the ocean with only a mask and fins, enjoying the peaceful quiet of the underwater world. When she decides to take the diving class, she meets the instructor, renowned diver Pascal (Sofiane Zermani), and the two quickly fall for each other. As their relationship becomes more intense, Roxana starts to equal, and even eclipse, some of Pascal's accomplishments. And it's starting to look like he's not the type who's happy resting on his laurels.

Is It Any Good?

This is an intense, dark drama that's as much, if not more, about the imbalance of power in mentor/mentee relationships, especially when they become romantic, as it is about no-limit diving. The two leading actors in No Limit have a lot of screen magnetism, and the entire cast turn in very good performances. The direction takes viewers through the story as it unfolds, without spoon-feeding answers, which keeps up the tension and suspense.

The underwater photography is fantastic. It's easy to see and follow the action when no one can speak, even in the black depths of the ocean. A brief pairing of sex and violence make it best for oldest teens and up who can handle the intensity.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

Families can talk about the sexual content in No Limit, especially when it's paired with violence. Is it too much? Does it advance the story, or is it just there to entertain?

Is the depiction of drinking and smoking excessive? Is it glamorized, or realistic? Does that make a difference? Why?

Had you ever heard of no-limit diving before you saw this movie? What did you learn about it? What do you think of it as a sport?

Movie Details

• On DVD or streaming : September 9, 2022
• Cast : Sofiane Zermani , Camille Rowe
• Director : David M. Rosenthal
• Inclusion Information : Female actors
• Studio : Netflix
• Genre : Drama
• Topics : Sports and Martial Arts , Ocean Creatures
• Character Strengths : Courage , Perseverance , Teamwork
• Run time : 118 minutes
• MPAA rating : NR
• Last updated : September 30, 2022

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

Suggest an Update

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Is ‘No Limit’ a true story? The tragic death behind the film

• by Lilyanne Rice
•  – on Sep 12, 2022
•  in Netflix

No Limit  is a French film streaming on Netflix that tells a dramatic story about love, ambition, jealousy, and death. It focuses on Roxana Aubrey, a student who leaves Paris to chase her dream of becoming a professional freediver. In the south of France, Roxana falls for Pascal Gaulthier, her instructor and a world champion freediver. 

Under Pascal’s guidance, Roxana becomes a world-class freediver, breaking record after record. After it becomes painfully clear to Pascal that the student has usurped the master, he develops a negative attitude towards Roxana’s achievements. His jealousy and wickedness ultimately lead to her death. 

No Limit  is based on the life and death of French freediver Audrey Mestre

David M. Rosenthal,  No Limit ’s writer and director, based the film on Audrey Mestre’s life and death . Audrey was a French woman who lost her life during an attempt to break the freediving record. 

Mestre was an underwater sports pro when she met freediving champion Francisco ‘Pipin’ Ferreras. Francisco put her under his wing, training her to master the art of no-limit freediving. The pair also started dating and were married in 1999 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. 

Audrey progressed rapidly in the sport, breaking the freediving record in 1999 and 2000. In August 2002, Tanya Streeter set the world record for freediving by diving 160 meters. 

Two months later, Audrey and Pipin traveled to the Dominican Republic, where Audrey hoped to dive to 171 meters. Her practice attempts went well as she often came close to her target. 

On the day of the official attempt, the weather wasn’t conducive, but it wasn’t bad enough to force a postponement. After taking a deep breath, Audrey plunged into the deep and reached 171 meters. Unfortunately, the system designed to facilitate her rapid return to the surface failed. 

Furthermore, the strong current and improperly set up vertical riser rope slowed her rise to the surface. By the time a rescue diver and Pipin took her out of the water, Audrey had spent nearly nine minutes in the water, more than double the time required for the dive. 

Audrey reportedly had a pulse, but without medical personnel at the dive point or on the shore, there was no chance of reviving her. 

The event received intense backlash because the organizers didn’t follow standard safety measures. An investigation into Mestre’s death found that it was unforeseeable, and multiple factors had contributed to Audrey’s death. 

The investigation found no one culpable in her death, though some observers claim Pipin killed Audrey. 

Also Read: Audrey Mestre’s story — Her rise and tragic death detailed

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Stream It Or Skip It: ‘No Limit’ on Netflix, a French Drama About a Freediving Champion and Her Doomed Romance

Where to stream:.

• french film

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This week on BOATS ( Based On A True Story ) Theatre is No Limit (now on Netflix), a French drama “inspired by” the life of Audrey Mestre, a record-setting freediver who – well, the events of her life are widely known but not that widely known, so we’ll save that for the movie. What you need to know going into it: freedivers compete to see who can hold their breath and go the deepest into the ocean. No scuba gear, just your lungs. Specifically, no-limit diving sees the diver holding onto a weighted sled attached to a line and plunging to a specified depth – well beyond 500 feet, if you’re going for the record – then using a propulsion tank to jet them back to the surface. It puts a lot of pressure on your physical and mental faculties, and makes for some reasonably intriguing drama, as we learn in this movie.

NO LIMIT : STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

The Gist: Roxana (Camille Rowe) learned to freedive from her grandfather. She’s a youngster when we meet her; she dives beneath the surface; hey, look, a sea turtle; and suddenly, she’s an adult. She sits in the lecture hall, listening to her prof bloviate in uberdramatic tones about the creatures that live in the deepest darkest deeps of the ocean, where the pressure is so intense, it’ll crush your lungs and you die immediately, that’s our time for today, have a nice week! Roxana spies a flier for a freediving course taught by record-setting diver Pascal Gauthier (Sofiane Zermani), gets in an argument with her mother (Roxana’s been skipping therapy), and trucks to the beach for the course.

She meets one of the instructors, Tom (Cesar Domboy), who’s a nice guy, and there’s a bit of a spark between them. On the boat, Pascal makes quite the shirtless entrance – no lack of confidence there, on any front. Tom invites Roxana to dinner with Pascal and the crew, and Pascal sits across the table and bores holes in her with his stare and gives off the type of skeezy vibe that makes you wonder if we should chum his underpants and find the nearest shark frenzy. She goes to the ladies’ room and he follows her in and hey now how about that, a few minutes later, the woman he came to the party with storms off in a huff.

Pascal invites Roxana to come with the team for their next excursion, and leaves it to his grizzled coach Stephane (Laurent Fernandez) to tell her that Pascal is training for a world-record 172-meter dive today. No biggie! He pulls it off, but tragedy strikes one of his safety divers doesn’t surface. They pull the guy out and Roxane performs CPR but it’s too late. Which means there’s a job opening on the team, and Roxana is in, despite her inexperience. She’s gone diving with Pascal, see, and he knows she’s gifted – she can hold her breath and remain calm and understands the economy of movement necessary to be a great freediver.

It doesn’t take long for Roxana to quit college and go on the road throughout Europe with Pascal for competitions, first as part of the team, and then to compete herself. Pascal seems a little jealous, and then seems even more jealous when he starts blacking out during dives and can no longer compete. He shifts to coaching Roxane, who rockets to freediving notoriety. She breaks a record for a swim-fin dive. She’s called a sex symbol. She’s in the throes of ecstasy with Pascal one night when he puts his hand around her throat and squeezes a little. She’s not into it. Maybe it’s not too late to procure some chum and a boat ride.

What Movies Will It Remind You Of?: Shuffle the scripts for Into the Blue , The Big Blue , Enough and – I dunno, what’s a movie about an obscure sport? Balls of Fury ? Dodgeball ? Yeah, Dodgeball – Dodgeball , and you’ll get a rough approximation of No Limit .

Performance Worth Watching: Rowe gives an empathetic performance as Roxana, despite the screenplay giving her little more than a wisp of a character to work with.

Memorable Dialogue: Stephane boosts Roxane’s confidence: “Roxy. You don’t need him. You don’t need anybody.”

Sex and Skin: A few medium-hard-R-rated sex scenes, each more steamy and graphic than before.

Our Take: No Limit mirrors some of the broad strokes of Mestre’s life, which had its share of – how do I say this without spoiling anything – ambiguities . Those ambiguities draw fascination to a movie that’s otherwise tedious, maudlin in tone and populated by flimsy characters. There’s little sense of Roxana’s passion for the sport, her ambition or her love for Pascal, who projects his true, ugly, megalomaniac self up there for everyone to see like Bat-Signal. Our two leads each get one confessional monologue, and multiple scenes in which they plunge into the ocean’s inky blackness – so many, including multiple dream sequences, that their repetition becomes wearisome, and almost comical.

That isn’t to say such imagery isn’t poetic. The muffled stillness and vast, open spaces can inspire awe, wonder, fear and introspection. But writer-director David M. Rosenthal’s proclivity for dramatic underwater photography and semi-torrid sex scenes can’t compensate for the movie’s languid pace and dramatic impotence. It often looks beautiful, but is a long, slow descent into mostly empty waters.

Will you stream or skip the French freediving drama #NoLimit on @netflix ? #SIOSI — Decider (@decider) September 15, 2022

Our Call: SKIP IT. No Limit exists in a nowhere-zone between sports drama and doomed romance.

John Serba is a freelance writer and film critic based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Read more of his work at johnserbaatlarge.com .

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Home » Endings Explained

No Limit ending explained – what’s the key message?

This article discusses the ending of the Netflix film No Limit and will contain spoilers.

READ: Everything We Know About No Limit.

No Limit starts with somber music and a young girl standing looking out into the open ocean alone on a beach. The girl is greeted by an old man (who we learn is her grandfather) who hands her diving gear and she begins to swim in the crystal clear waters.

We’re given shots of the girl swimming alone in the ocean, then she rises out of the water slightly older, showing us that she’s been swimming/diving all her life. 

Roxy, whilst she is a strong female lead and is constantly improving and developing, is still defined by the men around her. Her grandfather, her lover, her friends, her team, even when she states she’s taking on the dangerous No Limit dive for her, it’s only because she’s been orchestrated and manipulated into it, proving herself to everyone around her. 

Roxy denies the wishes of her mother, and Roxy’s attempt at suicide was inspired and promoted because her father also committed suicide. She denies being a sex symbol, but it’s suggested she’s only in the position she is because she slept her way there. This film is very sexually driven, so she is defined by her body and how she’s using it, both in and out of the ocean. 

Pascal’s character is dark, devious, and very hyper-masculine. He’s a leader, he’s sexy, and is a driving force for Roxy. From the beginning of their relationship we know he’s a cheater, a liar, and gets away with everything because he is the star athlete. As he develops Roxy he sees her as competition, not only that he sees her as his possession. 

Towards the end of the film, Roxy follows Pascal and catches him cheating on her, which then causes Roxy to go and cheat on Pascal with Tom, making them as bad as each other, still flawed, still fighting their instincts and demons. Pascal being the know-it-all he is finds out, and he’s not going to let this go unpunished. 

Netflix film No Limit ending explained

Stakes are high for Roxy as she’s going to attempt a new world record for 173 meters. Pascal goes to do a final check on her equipment after Tom and Stephan have already done so. Before Roxy goes under he gives her one kiss — is this the kiss of death, or a romantic good luck gesture?

As Roxy is sinking further and further into the dark, lonely waters, she looks uncomfortable. As she tries to release to allow herself to come back up, it’s jammed. It’s a very gentle, calm scene of her slowly returning to the top, with soft piano music and whale song. Roxy slowly let’s go as she has run out of breath. On the surface, it’s been over seven minutes and everyone begins to panic to get her out of the water. They drag her out, but it’s too late. Pascal has conducted the perfect murder, one where he can place blame on someone else. 

In the final scene we have an old man sitting in a boat, sobbing. We assume this is Roxy’s grandfather, as he takes the urn and sprinkles her ashes into the water. The shot is from under the water so we see her ashes slowly dance around in the currents, as the boat drives away. 

The message I take away is a sad one — she was always better off alone, and with risk doesn’t always come reward. Freediving represents letting go of all frustrations and anger, getting to know yourself, and trusting your instincts, and I don’t think she really did. In the physical sense, she did, she was able to almost set a world record for the longest free dive, but personally, and mentally, I think her character couldn’t shake her demons which lead to her downfall. 

The final shot is in loving memory of the real Audrey Mestre, 1974-2002. 

What did you think of the Netflix film No Limit and the ending? Comment below.

You can watch this film with a subscription to Netflix.

Article by Romey Norton

Romey Norton joined Ready Steady Cut in June 2021 as a Film and TV writer, and since then, she has published over 400 articles for the website. With a Master of Arts Degree from the University of Leeds in 2017 and acting experience on screen, Romey uses her Film and TV knowledge to bring informative and detailed content for online publications and podcasting.

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No Limit [2022] Netflix Review: A Visually Arresting Sports Drama That Dives Into Obsession, Jealousy & Toxic Relationships

No Limit is a sexually charged, suspenseful romantic drama about unhealthy competition and obsession with winning in an extremely high-risk sport. It also deals with the dark side of toxic love and dangerous relationships that dives into jealousy, controlling behaviors, and abusive and manipulative tactics. Starring Camille Rowe, Sofiane Zermani, and Cesar Domboy in the lead roles, this visually striking film examines the power dynamics existing in asymmetrical relationships, hypermasculinity, self-destruction, and co-dependency.

A womanizer at heart, Pascal does not even find his girlfriend as a deterrent before he engages in fiery sex with Roxana. After his girlfriend breaks up with him, Pascal and Roxana fall in love as they both share a passion for freediving. She becomes part of the diving team having the best time of her life. For Roxana, the quiet tranquillity she experiences underwater lets her forget the trauma of losing her father, who took his own life. For Pascal, diving is a means by which he can succeed in life and escape the memories of his tough childhood and dysfunctional family.

It is ironic to tout this as a romance, as it is anything but a love story despite the abundance of steamy and erotic scenes. No Limit is an unflinching exploration of misguided love and toxic relationship characterized by insecurity, self-centeredness, dominance, and jealousy. Pascal’s character is a star athlete with more than 25 world records. He is hypermasculinity personified, a megalomaniac and misogynist who becomes obsessed with the spotlight and success. He emotionally manipulates Roxana to be with him and controls her in and outside the bedroom.

The most striking element of this mildly interesting narrative is its stunning cinematography, especially underwater diving shots. Thomas Hardmeier strikes a stunning balance of light and color to capture the visually resplendent images of the infinite expanse of the deep waters. It is fascinating to see the bodies diving into the water, the bubbles rising to the surface and the ray of sunlight penetrating the surface and slowly fading into the depths of the sea. Though it is instructional, the film allocates a lot of time to explain the pitfalls of this risky sport, the physiological requirements for safe diving, and the precautions to be taken by the team before diving. Some of the scenes tend to become repetitive, thus clocking the duration at one hour and fifty-eight minutes.

Irrespective of its interesting backdrop and visually striking imagery, the film is underwhelming as it takes its sweet time to show its exposition and rising action. The flat characters and slow showcasing of subtle character development refuse to provide an intense and palpable narrative. Though Roxana and Pascal have their own tragic and troubled past, we find it difficult to connect with their emotions from time to time. The performance of the lead characters is decent in this sexually driven film that portrays the power dynamics of opposing personalities. The balanced alternation between above and below the surface contrast the intricacies of the life above the surface and the peaceful nature of diving underwater. 

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No Limit (2022) Links: IMDb Cast: Sofiane Zermani , Camille Rowe

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An unapologetic feminist and vocal critic of sexism. A moody, caffeine-dependant, procrastinating disaster striving for perfection. Believes in the transformative power of any art, especially Cinema and Books.

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No Limit review: A deep dive into toxic relationships

No Limit is a French sports drama film about a young woman, Roxana, who drops out of college and begins a career competitively freediving. The movie is now streaming on Netflix.

No Limit is a film about a young woman, Roxana, as she decides to take freediving lessons, and ends up falling in love with her instructor, Pascal, in the process. She also ends up competing professionally, and breaks records on the way.

She pieces together a tight budget and joins the classes, where she ends up meeting Pascal, her freediving instructor and also a champion in the competing circuit for the same.

The two quickly and easily fall into a relationship together, and Pascal attempts to break a world depth record for freediving. They continue in this easy rhythm until their relationship becomes more overbearing than happy.

With several twists and turns in the narrative hereon, the film portrays the effects of toxic relationships and the need for individuality in every relationship.

The narrative highlights the power dynamics in such relationships, and acts as a cautionary tale filled with great intrigue and suspense for what’s to come.

It does fall a bit short at times, and the premise does get underwhelming, but it is still an interesting storyline.

Performances

The overall performances do feel a bit stilted and out of touch, however, the individual acting skills of the two leads and the chemistry they bring on screen are noteworthy.

Camille Rowe does a commendable job as Roxana, and makes one feel the desperation and feelings of suspense that she goes through. Her acting flows together seamlessly from scene to scene.

Sofiane Zermani plays Pascal and does a great job of making the viewer despise his character, yet still like his drive. He weaves the good and the bad of his character together pretty well, and provides a performance that shines through.

One of the most redeeming factors about the movie is the visually engaging cinematography that it has to offer. The entire movie is shot with a great amount of care to detail, and has a stunning balance of light and colour to show the depths of the sea.

The balance between fast scenes and the more slow, eerily calming ones is done well too. The narrative shifts between the plot and shots of the water to create a truly astounding yet chilling view of the deep unknown waters.

The first half of the movie moves by too quickly, with too much information being dumped on the viewer at once, and the majority of the plotline gets a mention in this part itself. The second half forms the downward spiral, but is much slower and harder to watch. A balance in the pace would’ve made the film an easier watch.

The plotline is immersive, but feels too forced at times. It almost feels like certain plot points are added just to elicit a response out of the audience, not quite for any advancement of the story.

No Limit is an interesting watch for anyone who is looking for a long, visually stunning but slow-paced movie. The suspense and eerily chilling shots underwater form the best part of the film.

Director: David M. Rosenthal

Date Created: 2022-09-09 13:17

Also Read: No Limit ending explained: Do Pascal and Roxana break the world record?

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Friday, September 9, 2022

No limit: movie review.

No Limit (2022)

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Camille Rowe (Roxana) Sofiane Zermani (Pascal) César Domboy (Tom) Laurent Fernandez (Stéphane) Zacharie Chasseriaud (Sasha) Natalie Mitson (Naomi) Muriel Combeau (Juliette) Mathias Minne (L'élève 1) Adriel Sorrente (L'élève 2) Laurence Porteil (Le Publiciste)

David M. Rosenthal

Roxana Aubrey decides to drop her studies and escape her life in Paris for a free diving course in the south of France. She is quickly pulled into a life that reaches new depths brought by the weight of an ocean's descent.

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Is Netflix’s No Limit Based on a True Story?

Directed by David M. Rosenthal, Netflix’s ‘No Limit’ AKA ‘Sous Emprise,’ is a French romantic drama movie that revolves around Roxana Aubrey, a student who decides to drop her studies and leave Paris, France. She ultimately decides to travel to the south of France to participate in a free diving course, where she starts falling for her teacher Pascal Gauthier, a world champion freediver. As the two learn more and more about their relationship through various competitions, Roxana starts becoming an expert in underwater sports, creating friction in her romantic life.

Starring Camille Rowe and Sofiane Zermani, the sports drama is a nail-biting adventure full of love, drama, and competition. The characters in the movie present a realistic side of such relationships, leading many to wonder if real-life events somehow inspire the story. If yes, what is the actual story, and how similar is it to the events depicted in the movie? Well, we are here to investigate the same!

Is No Limit a True Story?

Yes, ‘No Limit’ is based on a true story. Helmed and penned by David M. Rosenthal, the movie is inspired by the life of French world record-setting freediver Audrey Mestre. It adapts several events in the French sportswoman’s life into an engaging narrative on-screen. In the movie, we see that the events are primarily set in France, whereas Audrey moved to Mexico City, Mexico, while she was just a teenager. She became a marine biology student at a university in La Paz, Mexico.

Before this, Audrey was already pretty invested in underwater sports and was adept at diving at age thirteen. However, she did not get her certification before she turned sixteen due to France’s law. It was in the year 1996 that Audrey developed an interest in underwater sports and met Francisco “Pipín” Ferreras, a renowned free diver from Cuba. The two soon started dating and moved to Miami, Florida, where he began training her.

This allowed Audrey to reach record depths and become a respected figure in her own right. In 1999, she and Francisco got married in the coastal city of Fort Lauderdale, Florida. It was in the same year that Audrey broke the female world record by free diving at a depth of 125 meters with a single breath of air, and after a year, she broke her own record by diving to a depth of 130 meters.

In October 2002, Audrey decided to break the world record of no-limits free-diving established by Tanya Streeter on August 17, 2002, when the latter dived to 160 meters. She did a practice dive off Bayahibe Beach in the Dominican Republic on October 4, 2002, with a dive team led by Francisco; she went as deep as 166 and kept practicing. On the fateful day of October 12, 2002, Audrey decided to dive as deep as 171 meters.

Having reached the desired depth, Audrey reportedly opened up the valve on her air tank that would inflate the lift bag and take her to the surface. Unfortunately, the tank had no air, forcing the rescue diver to arrive and inflate her lift bag using his supply, though it was too late. Audrey could not reach the surface fast enough due to inadequate inflation, a strong current, and the riser rope was not vertical. The dive should have taken around 3 minutes, yet she remained underwater for over 8 minutes and 30 seconds.

Francisco put on his scuba gear and dived right in to save his wife, albeit the damage was already done, and Audrey was later pronounced dead at the hospital. The event received a lot of backlash for not following the proper guidelines. Many claimed that the event should not have been preponed and that there should have been more safety divers, rescue equipment, and medical professionals on-site to help Audrey. Apparently, she still had a pulse when brought to the surface, but the lack of medical facilities contributed to her death.

The public felt that Francisco’s attempts to resuscitate his wife underwater reportedly led to a loss of crucial time. It was also stated that the Cuban diver was responsible for charging Audrey’s air tank, though he did not allow anyone to check up on it, leading many to wonder about his motivations regarding the same. Audrey was cremated, and her ashes were scattered in the water. Moreover, she was posthumously enlisted in the Women Divers Hall of Fame in 2002.

In 2004, Francisco published a book under his name, titled ‘The Dive: A Story of Love and Obsession,’ which was ghost-written by Linda Robertson. The book details the Cuban diver’s version of events on that fateful day. Interestingly, Carlos Serra’s 2006 book ‘The Last Attempt: The True Story of Freediving Champion Audrey Mestre And The Mystery of Her Death’ presents a different version of the story. It states that Francisco and Audrey were about to divorce, and the former was unhappy about his wife’s success.

In his book, Serra claims that Francisco directly contributed to Audrey’s death by sabotaging her equipment. It should be known that Serra was once Audrey’s partner and part of the female diver’s last team. Additionally, in 2013, ESPN released a documentary called ‘No Limits,’ which was a part of their ‘Nine for IX’ series. Though the details surrounding Audrey’s death have been speculated by many, it is easy to see the similarities between her story and that of Roxana Aubrey in ‘No Limit.’

The two women left their studies behind to pursue underwater sports and were enthralled by their aptitude for the same. Besides, both of them were in a relationship with renowned sportsmen. Despite the name changes and the minor differences, it is easy to see the influence that Audrey’s story has had on the Netflix movie.

Read More:  Where Was Netflix’s No Limit Filmed?

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REVIEW: Limited Enthusiasm for ‘No Limit’

No Limit ( Sous Emprise ) is a Netflix Original French-language dark romance written and directed by David M. Rosenthal about Roxana ( Camille Rowe ), a college dropout with a challenged past who falls in love with the mysterious and daring diving instructor and world record holder Pascal ( Sofiane Zermani ) who comes on to her fast and intensely, dragging her into his twisted need to be superior in the sport and their relationship.

It’s almost unfair to label  No Limit as a romance, despite that being its official designation. Because not only is it not at all a happy story about love, it’s an unimaginative story about abuse. As a couple, you’re never for a moment lured into believing the two are in love with each other. Sure they have sex in some mildly intense scenes , and they go through some motions of romantic entanglement. But much of their relationship development, if it even happened at all, is skipped over and is marked pretty clearly by abusive behavior from the onset.

The subject of the film is handled fine. It’s not glorifying the abuse by any means and it isn’t terribly graphic either. It’s just banal. And ultimately, so is nearly everything else that happens around it. The characters are entirely flat, the diving drama is an interesting backdrop for sure, but even then the scenes are only visually interesting the first time or two. Do I find myself rooting for Roxana both to escape the abuse and to succeed in her own right as a diver? Of course, I’m not heartless. But because Pascal sucks all the life from her and her accomplishments, it also sucks all the excitement from watching. Is it a realistic depiction of how an abusive relationship drains you? Absolutely. Does it make for good entertainment in this case? Not particularly.

I did find myself marginally enamored with the diving. I will gladly give  No Limit  that. It’s a subject I’ve certainly never seen before and it gets described in pretty elaborate detail. The way several scenes take a lot of time to explain all of the details of the sport, the numerous iterations, the physiological aspects, and the safety precautions the divers’ teams take together is actually interesting. It’s a lot of exposition but it never feels droll. I enjoyed watching several different kinds of dives, record attempts, and scary situations. The only complaint I can make is, I mentioned, it does become visually repetitive. The dark depths of the ocean look the same after a while, and so does watching faceless divers go up and down and make hand signals at one another.

the most interesting part both dramatically and emotionally is the very end. It must be one of the most messed up endings to this type of film I’ve seen in a while. It gives no satisfaction, which isn’t a criticism, it’s an intentional choice, and constitutes some of the most dramatic action we actually witness the whole time. It’s an ending that will surely stick with me for a long time, even if the rest of the movie is rather forgettable.

Is it maybe worth enduring the whole two hours of  No Limit  just to witness its harrowing end? Maybe, if you don’t mind mildly interesting characters in a dark romance. Its diving backdrop is unique and kind of compelling on its own, but it doesn’t build nearly enough dramatic or emotional tension between or around its main characters to maintain my interest personally. It’s a realistic kind of tragedy, but realistic isn’t always interesting to watch on-screen.

No Limit  is streaming now on Netflix.

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‘No Limit’ (2022) – Netflix – Movie Review

No Limit (Sous Emprise) is a movie written and directed by David M. Rosenthal, starring Camille Rowe , Sofiane Zermani and César Domboy .

Roxana Aubrey studies marine biology, and decides to interrupt her studies to go diving in the coast of Southern France. It is inspired in real events.

With an interesting introduction into marine biology, we get to listen to a small part of a lecture about the abyssal zone, the story gives us the impression that the close to two hour feature film will be something new and captivating. A definite nod to Jacques Cousteau.

The scenes are beautiful, with its underwater sequences, as well as great overhead shots. The photography is nothing short of noteworthy.

The storyline develops well, at a good pace, taking us through the stages of the relationship between the two lead characters, performed well by Camille Rowe and Sofiane Zermani , and how they push themselves to the limit in their sport, and in their relationship.

Our Opinion

This is a movie that will probably entice divers and aspiring free-divers, but not only them. There is a story to be told in this movie, both about the competitiveness in an extreme sport, about true love, and very misguided, toxic love. With plenty of impressive underwater scenes and beautiful photography that makes this movie visually captivating.

The Stars Are….

Release date.

September 9, 2022.

Where to Watch No Limit

Sofiane Zermani / Pascal

Camille Rowe / Roxana

César Domboy / Tom

Zacharie Chasseriaud / Sacha

Alexandre Poole / Joseph Archer

Hassam Ghancy / Le Docteur

Laurent Fernandez / Stephane

Laurence Porteil / The Publicist

Grégory Gaule / Fabrice

Antonin Schopfer / Alain

See full credits >>

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No Limit: Release Date, Trailer, Songs, Cast

• Release Date 9 September 2022
• Language French
• Genre Drama, Romance, Sport, Thriller
• Duration 1h 58min
• Cast Camille Rowe, Sofiane Zermani, César Domboy, Zacharie Chasseriaud, Laurent Fernandez, Jonas Dinal, Natalie Mitson, Belen Enguidanos, Hassam Ghancy, Antonin Schopfer, Laurence Porteil, Alexandre Poole, Johakim Mejri, Grégory Gaule, Mathias Minne
• Director David M. Rosenthal
• Writer David M. Rosenthal
• Cinematography Thomas Hardmeier
• Music Atli Örvarsson
• Producer Maxime Delauney, Mélanie Laurent, Romain Rousseau
• Production Nolita Cinema
• Certificate A

About No Limit Movie (2022)

Roxana (Camille Rowe) falls in love with her teacher and world champion freediver Pascal Gauthier (Sofiane Zermani). As the two discover the depths of this intense sport and relation, one competition after another, the limits to it all are nowhere to be seen. Inspired by a true story.

No Limit Movie Cast, Release Date, Trailer, Songs and Ratings

No Limit Photos

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Meet the No Limit cast: who's who in the French Netflix romance

No Limit cast — a who's who guide to the French romantic drama.

No Limit is a French romantic drama that will leave you as breathless as the deep sea divers it focuses on.

The official Netflix synopsis reads: "When Roxana (Camille Rowe) meets world champion freediver, Pascal Gauthier (Sofiane Zermani), she falls head over heels in love. She becomes both lover and student as Pascal initiates her into an extreme sport that’s as enthralling as it is death-defying. 

"Moving from one competition to the next, in dive locations across the world, Roxana begins to push limit after limit, wholly consumed in the throws of this passionate affair… but where will it end? No Limit is inspired by a true story."

Let's take a look at the main players diving to extreme depths in  No Limit..

Camille Rowe as Roxana

Camille Rowe plays the lead role of Roxana. She drops out of college to pursue her dreams of becoming a freediver, where she falls in love with her instructor, Pascal.

She has a turbulent relationship with her mother, who disapproves of her leaving college to start a new life with Pascal and her dangerous deep-diving antics.

The French actress has previously starred in The Deep House, Our Day Will Come, Cosmic Dawn and many more.

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Sofiane Zermani as Pascal

Sofiane Zermani plays 2015 world freediving champion Pascal, who is Roxana's freediving instructor that she falls in love with. He's fearless, determined and the leader of the diving school team. 

There's an instant attraction between him and Roxana and he wastes no time in letting his feelings known. He also encourages Roxana's rookie diving talents, despite it being dangerous.

Throughout the movie, Pascal's competitiveness constantly sees him trying to beat dangerous deep diving records.

Sofiane's acting credits include Savages, Close Enemies, Bad Seeds and more.

César Domboy as Tom

César Domboy is Tom, one of the freediving instructors who works with Pascal. He strikes up a friendship with Roxana after he spots her sleeping on the beach when she spends all her money on the freediving lessons.

As Roxana is determined to make it into the deep diving team, he teaches her important skills and is supportive of her talents. There is also a sense of attraction between him and Roxana.

César has been in The Walk, Outlander and Up for Love.

Zacharie Chasseriaud as Sacha

Zacharie Chasseriaud plays Sacha, who is on Pascal's diving team. He is good friends with Tom and Roxana.

Zacharie has featured in The Good Life, Among the Living and Plein la vue.

Laurent Fernandez as Stephane

Laurent Fernandez is Stephane, who is also part of Pascal's diving team. Initially, he butts heads with Pascal over his decision to include Roxana in the team due to her inexperience and he often voices his opinions.

Laurent has a hefty acting CV, with roles in One Night, Sideway, Crimes Parfaits and Mea Culpa to name a few.

No Limit is available to watch on Netflix now.

Grace is a digital writer with WhatToWatch.com, where she writes series guides, recaps and features for must-watch shows and delivers all the latest soap news and reactions. She graduated from Anglia Ruskin University in 2020 with a degree in Writing and Film Studies, which only made her love for creative writing, film and TV grow stronger.

You'll usually find her watching the drama unfold in the latest reality series or much-loved UK soaps (usually with chocolate by her side!). She's an expert in EastEnders, Emmerdale, Coronation Street and everything reality-related from Selling Sunset and Married At First Sight UK to 90 Day Fiancé UK. Plus Netflix megahit Virgin River!

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J.K. Simmons knows how to do sociopath. There’s something so fascinating about a performer like Simmons who can pivot from a guy who looks like your average suburban neighbor to a total lunatic with a perfectly timed malevolent smile. He’s having a blast in most of “You Can’t Run Forever,” and the fact that it was co-written and directed by his wife of almost thirty years probably made this an even more memorable shoot. Sadly, he’s the only one having fun. You certainly won’t.

To be fair, “You Can’t Run Forever” does open with a memorable blast, but it’s a scene that’s indicative of the tonal problems that will follow. Simmons’ Wade pulls up to a gas station in the middle of nowhere just in time to see a fight between a couple sitting in chairs outside the convenience store and a dude yelling at his yappy dog. He marches up to the dog owner, solving the dilemma by shooting him and the couple before driving off over the horizon. He’s deranged. And not just your typical Movie Villain deranged. In one scene, he pleasures himself to a photo of the wife of the guy he’s just killed. There’s a version of “You Can’t Run Forever” that plays like “ High Tension ” or “ Martyrs ,” truly leaning into its ultra-violent view of the world.

The problem is that director Michelle Schumacher didn’t have the courage to make that movie. She’s constantly losing the tonal grip on this story, directing scenes with a flat lack of energy that leaves Simmons lost in a movie that has no idea what to do with him. The film really gets started when Wade encounters Eddie ( Allen Leech ) and his stepdaughter Miranda ( Isabelle Anaya ), killing the former and sending the young woman into the woods to survive. While Miranda’s very pregnant mother Jenny ( Fernanda Urrejola ) panics at home, and the inept local cops bumble their way through the investigation of what appear to be the first murders in their area—the best bit in the film involves an incompetent deputy reading a manual about how to handle a crime scene—Wade hunts Miranda through the woods. It’s another variation on “The Most Dangerous Game.”

And yet it’s not really. Schumacher and co-writer Carolyn Carpenter don’t really even trust their “predator vs. prey” concept, constantly bursting any rising tension by cutting back to a worried Jenny or the officers trying to figure out who is terrorizing their small town. And when flashbacks vaguely try to give Wade a loose motive for what he’s doing, the whole thing falls apart even further. This kind of movie only works with a ruthless, motiveless killer who pushes a victim into discovering their inner strength. But that kind of direct ‘one on one’ thriller requires trust in both performers and collaborators like editors and cinematographers who can make the setting into a threatening backdrop. There is absolutely zero tension in “You Can’t Run Forever.” It all feels like a lark, a project that would completely dissolve if not for the Oscar winner at its center.

About that Oscar winner—there is some perverted glee in watching a performer who is so far above everything else around him. The ruthlessness in his eyes, a twisted smile when he knows he’s in charge, a true sense of danger—that’s all there in Simmons’ choices. And yet none of his scene partners rise to meet what he’s trying to do, creating a weird professional/amateur dynamic that’s like watching mediocre athletes try to keep up with an all-star. Schumacher turns to cheap emotional tricks to try to amp up everything around her star, including using exploitative plot devices like suicide and the dangers of imminent childbirth, but none of it rises to Simmons’ level. He’s just running so fast that the film can’t keep up with him.

Brian Tallerico

Brian Tallerico is the Managing Editor of RogerEbert.com, and also covers television, film, Blu-ray, and video games. He is also a writer for Vulture, The Playlist, The New York Times, and GQ, and the President of the Chicago Film Critics Association.

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• Oppenheimer 's success pushed IMAX earnings past $1 billion in 2023.

When you hear that Christopher Nolan pushed the boundaries of IMAX filming with Oppenheimer , this is not an overstatement. The acclaimed director occupied as much space as possible within the platter that physically holds the IMAX film print, which amounts to exactly 180 minutes of film . During an exclusive conversation with IMAX CEO Richard Gelfond and CSO Giovanni Dolci at Cannes, Collider's Editor-in-Chief Steve Weintraub asked about that limitation and whether they have plans to extend it.

During the interview, both Gelfond and Dolci didn't seem too worried about an IMAX-filmed movie not being able to run longer than three hours. The logistics of filming a movie entirely in this format are still being perfected, and now that more and more studios are getting used to this idea, there's quite a long road ahead before considering making IMAX movies longer than three hours. Gelfond also added an important piece of information:

"We're not looking at any project to make it longer. And by the way, this won't surprise you, the studios and exhibitors love that that's the maximum runtime. So we have no pressure on that."

IMAX Limited Runtime Is Not a Problem, And It Won't Be For A Long Time

Gelfond is right when he talks about the overall impression of IMAX's runtime. The financial logic is simple: The longer a movie is, the fewer screenings you can have in one day, and this means that fewer people are coming in the long run. Additionally, as much fun as it is to check something out on the huge IMAX screens , not everyone is able to sit through a movie that's longer than two hours, much less three. So it makes sense that IMAX and exhibitors aren't too worried about it — not to mention that for the rare cases in which a movie is longer than 180 minutes , the traditional movie theaters will always be there to screen them.

Oppenheimer changed the game for IMAX. Last year, the company announced that the movie took IMAX earnings past $1 billion throughout 2023 . It's not surprising that the movie returned to IMAX theaters earlier this year for a victory lap. Back when the WWII drama premiered, the movie's cinematographer Hoyte Van Hoytema spoke with Collider and addressed the complications involved with filming with IMAX cameras and stressed that they are huge, heavy, delicate, and loud.

Oppenheimer is currently available to stream on Peacock. For more news about IMAX from Cannes, including updates on their new cameras and the films coming to the format next year, head over here .

Oppenheimer

The story of American scientist, J. Robert Oppenheimer, and his role in the development of the atomic bomb.

Release Date July 21, 2023

Director Christopher Nolan

Cast Cillian Murphy, Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Robert Downey Jr., Tony Goldwyn, Scott Grimes, Jason Clarke, Alden Ehrenreich

Runtime 180 minutes

Genres Biography, Drama, History

Writers Martin J. Sherwin, Christopher Nolan, Kai Bird

Studio Universal Pictures

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