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Summary: "The Perfect Storm" - The Perfect Film
Review: The Perfect Storm is the best picture I have seen all year! Director Wolfgang Peterson shows us the emotion and depth of man's struggle against nature, and it's ultimate consequences as the fishing boat Andrea Gail heads through the worst storm in recorded history. The film does a terrific job of entering us into the world of fisherman. The storyline and characters are very wonderfully delved into. The actors do a fantastic job of showing us these are real people, and the film does great job showing us this emotional true story! The film includes stellar performances from George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, and Diane Lane(who provides extreme heart to the film and is a serious oscar contender!)who make us really care about the characters they are playing, plus a very strong supporting cast - John C. Rielly, William Fichtner, John Hawks, Mary Elizabeth Mostrantonio, and Allen Payne. The film is loaded with suspense, and will keep on the edge of your seat! As the Andrea Gail makes it's way through the storm, you will have sweaty palms and bite your nails. The film aslo includes a rescue attempt by the coast guard, to not only rescue the passengers of a doomed yacht but to rescue four of their own men, so terrific, that by the end of the action sequence you will be going wow! The massive Oceans are downright terrifying! The special effects are so good, that at no point in the film can you tell the ocean is computer generated! Not to mention this film has one of the best original scores in recent history(beautifully executed by James Horner). The film's climax is amazing! The end is very emotional aswell and will bring tears to your eyes. It is one of the most beautiful endings to a film ever( George Clooney's speech is wonderful and Mark Wahlbergs goodbye to Diane Lane is heartbraking!) In a summer of not so stellar films, "The Perfect Storm" shines on top. This film was absolutely amazing in theaters, the DVD has to be spetacular. Be sure to pick it up, a must have! Absolutely the best film, not only of the summer, but in recent history!
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Summary: 'Reader's Digest' Can't Wait!
Review: Whenever I am in a waiting room and I look through the pile of magazines sitting there, I always make a beeline for Reader's Digest and turn to that month's "Drama in Real Life." You may know what I'm talking about. The heroic tales of Real People in TERRIFYING CIRCUMSTANCES! The ad executive who fights to stay alive after being caught in an avalanche. The 911 operator who talked to the eight-year old boy who's little brother had just fallen into the lawn mower. The young woman trapped in a car, surrounded by flood waters... that are continuing to rise. I love these stories, not because they are gripping "drama," but because they are exciting. Often hokey, but undeniably exciting. Which brings me to Wolfgang Petersen's "Drama in Real Life: The Movie" (known to everyone else as "The Perfect Storm"). This too, is a story BASED on real life. I say "based" because (WARNING! PLOT SPOILER AHEAD! STOP READING THIS PARAGRAPH IF YOU DON'T ALREADY KNOW HOW THE STORY ENDS! ) nobody really knows what happened onboard the fishing boat that encountered the titular tempest. There were no survivors, which means that once the swordfishing boat Andrea Gail leaves port, any scene that takes place aboard her, is pure speculation. Okay, those of you who left may now resume reading. The plot of this story is like The Weather Channel's ultimate fantasy: in October of 1991, three massive storm systems collided off the coast of Newfoundland and created a freak weather system that had never been previously recorded. The results were waves fifty to a hundred feet high and winds in excess of 140 m.p.h. And into this hell chugged the Andrea Gail. We learn a little bit about the crew in the opening half hour of the movie. There's the gruff Captain (Clooney) who hasn't brought in a good haul of fish in quite some time. There's the new guy (Walhberg) who just wants to make enough money to be able to settle down with his worrisome girlfriend (Lane). There's the divorced father who misses his kid (Reiley- Walhberg's buddy from "Boogie Nights" [Dirk Diggler and Chest Rockwell return!]) and the guy who just signed on the day before (Fitchner). There is also an African-American who is only given about ten lines in the movie. And some weird guy. Like I said, they've been in a slump, so they cruise out father than they've ever gone before, unaware of the meteorological horror that is brewing behind them. When they finally make a great catch and it's time to head home, they realize what is standing between them and their paycheck. So the choice is thus-wait out the storm and watch their $250,000 worth of swordfish spoil, or say "damn the torpedoes" and head through the storm to get home. They make the wrong decision. These scenes are pure melodrama, but you can feel the tension building. Petersen frequently shows the storms building in intensity- usually by showing a large tanker or other shipping vessel getting the snot kicked out of them by the storm and then cutting back to a shot of the tiny Andrea Gail. You just KNOW that these guys don't stand a chance. When it hits, the audience is breathless. The ship is capsized and then righted. Sharks are washed up onto the deck. Parts of the boat are snapped off by wind or debris and men are blown overboard and dragged by their saftey lines. A Coast Guard rescue mission also becomes perilous when the men who have to jump from their helicopter find that the rolling sea can make-in one second- a ten foot drop into a sixty foot canyon fall. The special effects are 90% convincing. These days, I have noticed that digital effects are a little TOO perfect. The rolling waves are amazing to look at, but they just look too real, too crisp, too detailed. This is a quible, though. Petersen's dirction of these sequences are top-notch and are far superior to this film's cousin, "Twister." Get past a really sappy first half-hour, and you will be in for a heck of a ride.
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Summary: Storm Watchable?
Review: In a summer full of pretty terriblefilms, "The Perfect Storm" offeredsomething a little better. Thoughthere wasn't a whole lot of charachterdevelopment, it was easy to feel andexpierience some their emotions. GeorgeClooney (who had little to work with)perfectly portayed the vast emotions ofCaptain Billy Tyne. From the fear tothe anger and the sorrow at the end.Mark Wahlberg was equally as convincingin a somewhat easier role. Wolfgang Petersen also showed his knack for turning chaos into poetry. Not thebest film of the year, that distinctiongoes to "Gladiator" but a terrific filmnone the less.
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Summary: "The Perfect Storm" Sinks
Review: An incredible storm was not the most destructive force in thisfilm. The most destructive force in this film was the over stuffed script. That's what sinks this film. I cannot remember the last time I sat through a film that thought it was this important. Every element in this film smacks of arrogance. From the over inflated characterizations to the audacity that the writers had to "dramatize" the events that happenned on the Andrea Gail. This film could have been fantastic. All the elements were in place. A wonderful, heart wrenching true story; a superb cast; an accomplished director. But sadly, the screenplay is very subpar. It takes too much time telling us why we should care for these characters without actually accomplishing that goal. The methods used to make the characters likeable were so obvious it was like seeing how a magican saws a woman in half. The fact that these are based on real people should be able to stand on its own. It is filled with dialogue so bad that its laughable. But that's not to say that the film is without any redeeming qualities (Yes, they are there even though they are few and are between). As the commercials boast, the special effects are quite stunning and the action sequences are masterful. But that eventually becomes a problem as well. The movie was more concerned with the storm than with the characters on that ship. The effects were great but everything else was thrown to the side.
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Summary: I'm a fishermans wife
Review: I'm a fishermans wife and I can definately say that this movie has given an accurate portrayel of fishermen and the dangers they face when they go out to get their catch. I feel that fisherman finally get the recognition and appreciation that they deserve with this movie. A big THANK YOU to Sebastian Junger for showing the world how we live.
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Summary: A Perfect 5
Review: The Perfect Storm is a really good movie. The special effects were MORE than perfect, and the acting was great. I didn't think the characters were paper-thin at all. At least ~I~ found myself sad at the end. The fact is, people - who really went to see a 2 1/2 hour-long movie and expected a fully ACCURATE portrayel of a ship lost at sea? To act disappointed that they made half the movie up is ludicrous. It was LOOSELY based on a real-life account. I found it to be a great fictional story that had me on the edge of my seat. Through all this people still tend to shoot this movie down based on the fact that it is more sentimental than action-packed. Maybe so. But I think that the main point of the film was to make the audience feel for the characters on board and their families and friends waiting back home. The sentiment really made the movie. (BTW, I thought there was TONS of action) I really liked this movie and would recommend it to anyone.
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Summary: it shows how it really is
Review: Coming from a fishing town in Alaska, this film hits especially close to home. Although the Bristol bay crabbing fleet has lots worse weather and loses lots more lives and boats than we do, we still have our share of boats that sink in bad storms. Some people complain that The Perfect Storm doesn't have a happy ending, well "welcome to the real world". It wouldn't have been realistic at all if any of the crewmen would have survived. There has also been some complaints about the weak roles that the actors play. I know alot of fishermen and deckhands, I have done some long-lining myself, and those men and women acted perfectly normal; no great, awesome speechs; you never see a bunch of fisherman get super emotional and powerful; but often there is alot of passion shown for fishing since it is not only a job, but a way of life. All in all, the movie was very realistic and powerful. Last of all, hats off to the coast-guard men and women who risk their lives daily to save others. It is very much appreciated among all fisherman and sea-farers; especially those who have been rescued by them. It's a great film that hits close to home. I highly recommend it
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Summary: Perfect Disappointment
Review: This film has such promise, but in the end fails to deliver, and proves that special effects cannot make the perfect movie. Supposedly, this was based on a true story, but if nobody survived how can we know for sure? Who's to say a fish hook snagged a man's hand and pulled him overboard? Was there as much dissension among the crew as portrayed? On a deeper level, what's the point of the entire movie if the boat ultimately sinks with all hands? George Clooney went to great lengths to cut the whipping chain, but he could have saved himself the effort. Had the writers developed a strong leading lady, the could have centered the movie on the boat that made it back and then dashed the hopes of the audience when the Andrea Gail sunk. This would have been similar to Titanic, but at least there would have not been the sense of pointlessness the movie as is portrays. Another problem involves character development. For instance "Bugsy" spends time trying to pick up Irene in the bar, only to be stood up. Yet on the boat two men develop an intense hatred but the audience does not know why except for one exchange of insults in a bar. This movie's setting offered the writers an incredible chance to create a blockbuster hit. Instead they tried to utilize tremendous special effects to support a weak story and horrendous miscastings.
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Summary: "Perfect Storm," Perfect Movie
Review: In late October, 1991, the commercial swordfishing boat Andrea Gail left Gloucester, Massachusetts, headed for an area just off Nova Scotia known as the "Flemish Cap." The weather in the North Atlantic in the fall is always chancy, but Captain Billy Tyne (played here by George Clooney) had been the victim of some poor harvests of late, and he needed fish; moreover, he knew where to find them. He was also aware of the risks involved at that time of year. What he didn't know and could not foresee (nor could any meteorologist have predicted), was that three major storms were about to converge to form one huge storm, the likes of which comes along only once in every hundred years or so. And the course he had set was about to take him, his boat and crew of five men, right into the middle of it. Director Wolfgang Peterson recounts this incident in "The Perfect Storm," a deftly crafted and intense rendering of the story of the Andrea Gail, and its encounter with the storm of the century. What Peterson did with this film, the way he tells the story, can be likened to what Melville did with the novel, "Moby Dick;" as it moves along, he fleshes out the characters and subtly provides an intimate portrait of what this kind of life is all about. He pays such meticulous attention to details, that by the time you're in the middle of the storm, the impact is extraordinary; you know what this boat is and how it works, you've smelled the fish and the sweat and the sea, and worked alongside the crew. You know these people and what's at stake here. You know the feel of the fishing lines and the grappling hooks, felt that rush of adrenaline that comes when you hook a big one, or when a huge wave washes over the deck. He gives you so much in this film, puts you in it so completely, that it primes your senses for whatever's to come. Combine all of this with the best special effects imaginable, outstanding performances, and a terrific score by John Horner, and you're in for the thrill of a lifetime. The charismatic Clooney is exemplary here as Tyne, and is able to convey a real sense of who this man is without resorting to unwarranted theatrics or bravura. He simply knows him from the inside out, and it shows in the way he carries himself, the way he walks and talks, right down to the look in his eye; the seasoned professional with all the skill and confidence required of his job, but a man who is nevertheless also aware of his own shortcomings. It's a commanding performance with nuance and depth, all there on the screen, and Clooney makes it real. Mark Wahlberg is also outstanding as Bobby Shatford, the rookie fisherman who can't stand to be more than two feet away from the woman he loves, Christina (Diane Lane). Another notable performance is turned in here by John C. Reilly, who does an emotional turn as "Murph," the veteran fisherman who is divorced, has a young son he loves dearly, and lives with the remorse of past mistakes that ultimately destroyed his marriage. Rounding out the exceptional supporting cast are William Fichtner (Sully), Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio (Linda), Allen Payne (Alfred), John Hawkes (Bugsy) and Michael Ironside (Bobby Brown). There are thrills and heroics to spare in "The Perfect Storm," but it's also inspiring; once you've seen the Coast Guard in action, for example, you'll never take them for granted again. What makes this such a great movie, though, is that it's about real people, an instance of ordinary people getting caught up in extraordinary circumstances, and Peterson has made them accessible; these are people with whom anyone in the audience will be able to identify. This is a powerful, emotionally charged and unforgettable film; it will take you to places and you'll experience things from the comfort of your seat in the theater (or on the couch) that most people will never get close to in real life. And therein lies the true magic of the cinema; this is one movie you absolutely do not want to miss.
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Summary: Perfect Storm Is great
Review: I thought this movie was excellent--particularly the work of John Hawkes. This man has a brand new admirer. The special effects were awesome. But what was really interesting was how the film used the smaller pieces from the book, such as the different dreams each of the families left behind had. If you want to know what those were, buy the book, then see the movie. My one complaint would have to be the speeches. "Separate the men from the boys; etc." But that is all.
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