Waves

Waves follows a Black family in South Florida whose lives are shaped by the intense pressure placed on the teenage children by their demanding father. Tyler, a popular high school student and competitive wrestler, devotes himself to training and to his girlfriend Alexis, while his father pushes him relentlessly toward success. When Tyler suffers a shoulder injury that threatens his athletic future, and other pressures close in, the family's bonds are strained to breaking point. The story later shifts its focus to Tyler's younger sister Emily, who must find her own way forward in the aftermath of loss.

Trey Edward Shults wrote and directed the film, his third feature after Krisha and It Comes at Night, and the producers include Kevin Turen, James Wilson and Shults himself. Kelvin Harrison Jr. plays Tyler, with Taylor Russell as Emily, Sterling K. Brown as Ronald, Renée Elise Goldsberry as Catharine, Alexa Demie as Alexis and Lucas Hedges as Luke. It was released in November 2019.

Made for about 6 million dollars, the film returned roughly 3 million worldwide, a modest result against its budget. Audiences rate it 7.5/10 on IMDb from about 29,000 votes and 7.4/10 on TMDB, while its critics' rating stands at 7.8/10 from 256 reviews, somewhat higher than either audience score.