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The Perfect Storm 2000 |
Review by Jonathan Cornwell |
Directed by Wolfgang Petersen
PG-13, 128 min. (language, scenes of peril) |
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Starring: George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, Diane Lane, William Fichtner, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, John C. Reilly, Allen Payne, John Hawkes, Michael Ironside
Producers: Gail Katz, Wolfgang Petersen, Paula Weinstein
Screenplay: Bill Wittliff
Distributor: Warner Brothers
Released: 6/30/00 (Wide) |
Rating:
 (out of ) |
It's not often that movies with depressing endings do well with audiences. But that's exactly what
happened here with director Wolfgang Petersen's (Air Force One, In the Line of Fire) latest thriller,
The Perfect Storm. Aptly named, the title refers to one of the worst storms on record in October 1991
off the Northeast coast. Meterologists called it a "perfect storm" because two storms, a
hurricane and a cold front, converged to create a monster storm. Make no mistake, this movie is about
the storm, not the characters, although some effort is made to care about the people involved in the
storm. But the storm itself is awesome, and the special effects that were utilized to make this storm
believable are top-notch. That's what makes this movie work, and leaves you stunned as you leave the
theater.
The first part of the film builds the characters that work on the Andrea Gail, a fishing boat captained
by Billy Tyne (Clooney). One of these characters include Bobby (Wahlberg), a poor fisherman trying to
make ends meet for him and his girlfriend Christina (Lane). After a disastrous outing that results in
a poor payout for the fish they caught, Billy decides they must go out again to make up their losses.
The rest of the crew hesitates, led by Bobby's complaints that he must spend more time with his girlfriend.
But, of course, they relent and join the doomed boat one more time. Ironically, before the storm hits
they hit paydirt, reeling in the biggest haul of their careers. Now they must decide whether to head
for home through the storm or wait, thereby ruining the fish they have just caught. Boldy, Bobby pushes
through the storm until they meet 100-foot waves and their ultimate fate.
The storm is reproduced impressively, as you feel as though you are there with them, and the tension is
built to high levels several times throughout the second half of the film. A concurrent story about the
rescue of another boating party is unnecessary, but it does add to the awe of how big a storm this really
is. Memories from The Old Man and the Sea and Moby Dick come to mind as you watch the last few minutes
unfold, as the crew boldly meets their fate.
This is an impressive motion picture, worthy of a spot on a few top 10 lists this year, because it
accomplishes the difficult task of making something other than the actors the centerpiece of the picture. And
the aforementioned special effects make that storm believable, to the point where you can't believe
anyone would even attempt steering through it. I remember walking out of the theater thinking that
this was the first movie in a long time that really "wowed" me. And that's the sign of any good movie, one
that stays with you for days afterwards.
© 2000 Jonathan Cornwell
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| Masterpiece - Classic; Movie perfection |
 | Excellent - A Must See; One of the year's best films |
| Good - Highly Recommended |
| Fair - Worth seeing |
| Average - Viewable, but not recommended |
| Below average - View at own risk |
| Poor - Avoid at all costs |
| Very poor - An embarassment to the film industry |
| Zero | Awful - One of the worst films ever made |
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