THE PERFECT STORM
Year: 2000
USA & UK: Warner Bros
Cast: George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, Diane Lane, William Fichtner, Bob Gunton, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, John C Reilly, Allen Payne, John Hawkes, Janet Wright, Rusty Schwimmer, Troy Hartman, Josh Hopkins, Michael Ironside, Cherry Jones, Brad Martin, Christopher McDonald, Dash Mihok, Wiley M Pickett, Karen Allen, Alan Francis
Director: Wolfgang Petersen
Country: USA
UK: 129 mins
USA Rated: PG-13 for language and scenes of peril
UK Certificate: 12 for some maritime horror and a single use of strong
USA Release Date: 30 June 2000
UK Release Date: 28 July 2000
Synopsis
Based on Sebastian Junger's best-selling book, THE PERFECT STORM, the film tells of the courageous men and women who risk their lives every working day, pitting their fishing boats and rescue vessels against the capricious forces of nature.
Their worst fears are realized at sea on Halloween of 1991, when they are confronted by three raging weather fronts which unexpectedly collide to produce the greatest, fiercest storm in modern history ? the perfect storm.
For centuries, Gloucester, Massachusetts, has been one of the major fishing ports in the North Atlantic and is home to a swordfishing boat called the Andrea Gail, captained by Billy Tyne (George Clooney), a veteran fisherman who has had a run of disappointing catches. It docks beside the Hannah Boden, captained by Linda Greenlaw (Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio), who has been hugely successful with recent hauls.
Bobby Shatford (Mark Wahlberg) has a divorce lawyer to pay off and a new life to build with his girlfriend, Christina "Chris" Cotter (Diane Lane). Fishing is the only job he knows that will pay the kind of money he needs. So, against Chris' wishes, he's going to sign on again with Billy for one last trip this season.
Billy Tyne and Bobby are joined on the trip by Dale "Murph" Murphy (John C Reilly), a seasoned crewmember trying to support his estranged wife and child; Alfred Pierre (Allen Payne), a free-spirited Jamaican who has a way with women; Bugsy (John Hawkes), a friendly local who just wants someone to come home to; and last-minute replacement Sully (William Fichtner), who shares a volatile relationship with Murph.
Tyne is convinced that he can change his run of bad luck by going beyond the normal reach of New England fishing boats to the Flemish Cap, a remote area known for its rich fishing prospects. Once out at sea, he hears about the storm building offshore. But unlike Greenlaw, who determines to play it safe, Billy thinks he can beat the storm back to Gloucester, taking an enormous catch with him. If he doesn't try, his crew will come away empty-handed on this last trip of the season. It is nothing out of the ordinary for fishermen to wager their lives against their livelihoods.
Unfortuntely an extraordinary and disturbing weather pattern emerges once the Andrea Gail is out to sea. Local TV weatherman Todd Gross (Chris McDonald) tells his viewers it begins with Hurricane Grace and is on a collision course with two other weather fronts that are rapidly gathering strength. When the three meet, there will be a storm more terrifying than anyone has imagined, greater than any that has ever been recorded in modern history. The National Weather Bureau barely have time to send out a warning to all vessels at sea. The crew of the Andrea Gail never receives that warning. They have no forewarning of what is about to hit them.