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The Perfect Storm (2000) ...
"The Perfect Storm" has been demolished by some, and appreciated by many.
| Released: | 2000 |
| Running Time: | 130 minutes |
| Cast: | George
Clooney .... Capt. Billy Tyne Mark Wahlberg .... Bobby Shatford Diane Lane .... Christina 'Chris' Cotter John C. Reilly .... Dale 'Murph' Murphy William Fichtner .... David 'Sully' Sullivan Bob Gunton .... Alexander McAnally III, Mistral Owner Karen Allen .... Melissa Brown Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio .... Linda Greenlaw Allen Payne .... Alfred Pierre |
| Writers: | Sebastian Junger
(book) William D. Wittliff (screenplay) |
| Director: | Wolfgang Petersen |
| My Rating | ***1/2 |
The year 2000
proved to be quite prolific for Clooney's movie career. One year before, in
1999, he has left the set of the TV series "ER" in order to follow his dream of
becoming an actor on the silver screen. After appearances in "the Peacemaker"
and "out of Sight", Clooney got some time to fully concentrate on his life and
accepted to play in two movies: "O Brother, Where Art Thou?" and "The Perfect
Storm".
Inspired by a true story, a novel with the same title written by Sebastian Junger, director Wolfgang Peterson decided to make a movie which deals with the clash between man and nature, featuring George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, Diane Lane, Karen Allen and others.
Essentially, "The Perfect Storm" depicts an incident that occurred during the storm which hit North America in 1991. The central characters are the crew of the fishing boat Andrea Gail who were lost at sea due to severe conditions or the weather.
George Clooney plays the part of Billy Tyne, a once legendary long-line swordfish captain whom we find down on his luck. The first part of the movie follows the crew of Andrea Gail going back to the sea in order to find a big catch and reaching into the wrong place, thus getting in the middle of a powerful storm. The second half of the movie describes the crew's attempts to get home. Even if the movie is a carefully dosed mixture of New England fishery and sailor lore, some facts related to the Andrea Gail Story and a lot of drama, it still speaks about human heroism in front of the destructive power of Mother Nature, specifically the sea.
Mark Wahlberg plays the part of Bobby Shatford, one of the Andrea Gail crew members. Wahlberg got all serious about his role and even met Shatford's family before starting shooting the movie, as it was vital for him that they thought his performance to be accurate and respectful.
"The Perfect Storm"
has been demolished by some, and appreciated by many. The critics have
appreciated the special visual and auditory effects which played an important
part in creating the atmosphere on the sea. Reading Junger's novel it seems
almost impossible to reproduce the events in a movie. After all, this implies
getting really soaked! Still, Peterson took his chance and did a good
job.
Despite the movie's success, the family members of the original crew (Billy Tyne and Dale Murphy's) didn't seem to like it at all. In fact, they sued Time Warner and the other production companies. They weren't given any credit.
To summarize, "The Perfect Storm" may be inspired by a true story, but it is also highly fictionalized. Even if at times is exaggerated, it still remains one of the best movie recreation of a sea storm you have ever seen. Every frame is carefully thought of and every scene is as detailed as it can be. The director beautifully depicts the calm atmosphere before the storm to later catch nature's outburst in the tiniest details possible. The fury of the water, the fear of death, the courage and the wit of the crew, they are all perfect ingredients of this perfect storm.
