Herald rating: * * * *
Running time: 129 mins
Rental: Today
Review: Ewan McDonald
Sometimes you don't want Insight, Meaning, Poetry. You just want a Big, Dumb, Exciting Movie. This one is as big, dumb and exciting as they come.
Based on the bestseller by Sebastian Junger, it's the essentially true story of a
commercial swordfishing boat, the Andrea Gail from Gloucester, Massachusetts, which ran into "the middle of the monster" storm in the Atlantic in 1991. Also caught is a luxury yacht, but a little of that later.
The fishermen include all the great movie subjects — Captain Billy Tyne (George Clooney), pride stung because his catch is down; Bobby Shatford (Mark Wahlberg), in love with divorced mum (Diane Lane); Murph (John C. Reilly), job has cost him wife and son; Bugsy (John Hawkes), loner; Alfred Pierre (Allen Payne), outsider, only in it for the money; Sully (William Fichtner), last-minute addition.
Because of the bad season they have made one risky last trip beyond their usual fishing grounds. They have good luck then bad: the ice machine breaks and the catch will spoil unless they get home quickly. There's a storm on the way. Another skipper (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio) tries to tell them how bad it is, but their radio antenna has blown overboard.
Back in the bar in Gloucester, friends and relatives watch the Weather Channel and buy another round. Meanwhile the Coastguard is trying to rescue the boat and a pigheaded millionaire with no respect for nature (Bob Gunton).
By the end of the movie you won't feel too involved in the characters, because everything is shallow except the Atlantic, but the fantastic wind-machine and water-tank scenes will certainly have a special effect on you.
