Diving into the Unknown

Diving into the Unknown
Diving into the Unknown
	Takaisin pintaan
Directed by	Juan Reina
Written by	Juan Reina
Produced by	Juho Harjula
Starring	Patrik Grönqvist, Kai Känkänen, Sami Paakkarinen, Vesa Rantanen
Cinematography	Jarkko M. Virtanen, Tuukka Kovasiipi
Music by	KAADA
Production; company	Monami Agency
Distributed by	B-Plan Distribution
Release dates	27 January 2016 (Docpoint Helsinki); 19 February 2016 (Finland);
Running time	82 minutes
Countries	Finland, Norway
Languages	Finnish, Swedish, Norwegian, English

Diving into the Unknown (original title Takaisin pintaan) is a 2016 Finnish film directed by Juan Reina.

Four Finnish cave divers face their worst nightmare when two of their friends drown deep inside an underwater cave in Norway. When the official recovery operation is called off by the Norwegian and British authorities after being deemed too risky, the friends set out on a secret mission to retrieve the bodies themselves.

The film premiered at the 2016 Docpoint Helsinki on 27 January 2016 and had its international premiere in Visions du Réel film festival, Switzerland in April 2016.

Synopsis

The film opens with footage of a group of Finnish divers attempting to swim through a cave system in Plurdalen, Norway. The dive requires them to cut through ice and swim down into the [Pluragrotta] cave to depths of over 130 metres (430 ft) before emerging on the other side in a dry cave.^[2] During the course of the dive, two from the team, Jari Huotarinen and Jari Uusimaki, died.^[3]

An international team of rescue divers attempted to retrieve the bodies but ultimately abandoned the attempt due to the dangers involved, and the caves were closed by the police.^[3] Despite this, the survivors of the original diving team planned a covert but well-supported return expedition to retrieve the bodies of their friends.^[4] They were accompanied by the documentary crew that had originally begun filming their attempt to swim through the cave, and the dives were recorded on helmet-worn cameras.

The retrieval attempt was ultimately successful and both bodies were brought to the surface. The Norwegian police decided not to press charges against the divers.^[3]