The Perfect Storm (2000)
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A commercial fishing crew faces a deadly struggle for survival when they encounter a massive storm in the North Atlantic.
The story
In the Fall of 1991, the commercial swordfishing boat Andrea Gail returns to port in Gloucester, Massachusetts, with a poor catch. To redeem himself from a recent 'cold streak,' Captain Billy Tyne convinces his crew to join him for one more late-season fishing expedition. They head out past their usual grounds on the Grand Banks of Newfoundland, leaving a developing tropical storm behind them. After a successful haul, the crew faces a critical situation when their ice machine breaks down, necessitating a hurried return to shore. However, they soon find themselves caught between two powerful weather fronts and a hurricane, which the crew underestimates as they battle the raging sea.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
In the Fall of 1991, Captain Billy Tyne leads the crew of the Andrea Gail on a final fishing trip to the Grand Banks of Newfoundland. After a successful haul, they must rush back to Gloucester, Massachusetts, before their catch spoils. They encounter a massive storm where Hurricane Grace merges with a northern weather front. As the ship's radio fails, they receive a Mayday relay from a nearby ship, but a rescue helicopter is forced to ditch due to fuel issues. The Andrea Gail faces waves, a broken stabilizer, and failing pumps. Despite Billy's efforts to turn the boat around, the vessel is struck by a massive rogue wave and capsizes. Billy chooses to go down with the ship, while only one crew member, Bobby, manages to escape the sinking vessel. The film concludes with a memorial service where the survivors and families mourn the lost crew.
- First release year
- 2000
- Runtime (minutes)
- 130
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Wolfgang Petersen
- Writers
- William D. Wittliff · screenplay; Bo Goldman · uncredited rewrite
- Cast and characters
- George Clooney · Frank William "Billy" Tyne Jr.; Mark Wahlberg · Robert "Bobby" Shatford; Diane Lane · Christina "Chris" Cotter; William Fichtner · David "Sully" Sullivan; Karen Allen · Melissa Brown; Bob Gunton · Alexander McAnally III; Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio · Linda Greenlaw; John C. Reilly · Dale "Murph" Murphy
- Genres
- disaster; drama
- Themes
- survival; man vs. nature; professional pride
- Tone and mood
- tense; dramatic
- Setting
- The North Atlantic Ocean, specifically the Grand Banks of Newfoundland, in the fall of 1991.
- Premise and plot tags
- disaster; based on true events; maritime
- Source material / true-story basis
- 1997 creative non-fiction book by Sebastian Junger
- Reception
- The film received mixed reviews and was a box office success, grossing over $328 million worldwide.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 47% · scale: percentage · review count: 137; Metacritic · score: 59 · scale: 100 · review count: 36; CinemaScore · score: B+ · scale: A+ to F
- Awards and nominations
- Stinker Award · Most Intrusive Musical Score · Nominated; Saturn Award · Best Action/Adventure/Thriller Film · Nominated; ASCAP Film and Television Music Awards · Top Box Office Films · Won
- Production trivia
- Wolfgang Petersen turned down roles for the lead by Harrison Ford, Nicolas Cage, and Mel Gibson.; A ship similar to Andrea Gail, named Lady Grace, was used during filming.; The film was partially filmed in Gloucester, Massachusetts.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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