Full disclosure! I have listened to Jill Heinerth's book "Into the Planet" so I was very familiar with Jill's story, her book being one of my top 5 favorite books of all time! So I was very excited when I heard about Diving Into the Darkness! I was going to watch it and enjoy it because I have an incredible respect and admiration for Jill! However, my expectations were not very high in terms of production but I hoped the director will be able to do justice to Jill's incredible story and accomplishments!
Well, I was blown away by the cinematography and the whole production of this documentary! The visuals are stunning, the way the director Nays Baghai was able to tell the story is really impressive! Knowing the story told, as I watched the documentary, my heart was pounding and I was astonished by how he was able to convey the drama of the situation that was happening in a very difficult place to film! The soundtrack of the film is equally impressive! It truly gives the viewer, along with the visuals, the feeling of being in those caves with Jill! One of my friends who is not a diver and watched the documentary, said he almost had a panic attack watching, it felt so real to him! Also we are ICU nurses so can take a lot to make us panic!
Someone who has never heard of Jill Heinerth and stumbles upon this documentary, will be able at the end of it, to understand just how incredible of a person Jill is! On purpose I am not calling Jill a woman because in our society, somehow when you call someone a woman, you diminish the accomplishment! She is great for being a woman! No, she is a freaking incredible human being who has and is doing things, that don't seem humanly possible, showing incredible guts and strength, while displaying kindness and gentleness that you don't expect to come from someone such "BAD ASS!! So, thank you to everyone involved in this production and specially to the director Nays Beghai for being able to tell Jill's story in such stunning way! It was so worth the wait!
The production team created an incredible piece of history and any first place award is very much deserved! I hope a Golden Globe and an Oscar is coming!