In the middle of a stormgreat success of the year 2000
If that year Gladiator it hadn’t captured all the light of Wolfgang Petersen’s film’s success In the middle of a storm it would have been even more brilliant. Nominated for the 2001 Oscars in the categories The best sound AND The best visual effects, In the middle of a storm remains empty-handed as Ridley Scott’s film wins 5 Oscars, including these two, out of 12 nominations in total. But Wolfgang Petersen’s film, which tells the story of the sinking of theAndrea Gailfishing vessel captured in the “Perfect storm” from the end of October 1991 on the east coast of the United States, is nevertheless a very solid show, which the public gave a warm reception.
At the end of a disappointing season, Billy Tyne, captain of the Andrea Gail, takes a gamble and decides to try his luck in the Cape Flemish area. His crew accepts the risk and is rewarded: the fishing turns out to be good, even miraculous. But at the same time three low pressure fronts are rapidly converging towards the area. The storm rises, so quickly, so violently, that the weather services are caught by surprise. Linda Greenlaw, Billy’s colleague and friend, tries in vain to alert him. The Andrea Gail, caught in the storm, will wage her final battle alone against the raging elements…
When released theatrically in the summer of 2000, it had the third-best start in the United States for a film released on the Fourth of July weekend, behind independence Day AND Men in blackwith $41.3 million in revenue. At the end of his operation, he reports $328.7 million worldwide, for a budget estimated between 120 and 140 million dollars. As for the rather mixed reviews, while the special effects and casting performance are unanimously praised, the screenplay is singled out for its weakness and poor character development.
In the Middle of a Storm: A look at the tragic true story behind the film
Rain of stars on the stormy ocean
To form the crew ofAndrea GailWolfgang Petersen put together a extravagant casting. Its captain, Frank William “Billy” Tyne, is played by George Clooney, with Harrison Ford, Nicolas Cage and Mel Gibson having previously turned down the role for various reasons. Robert “Bobby” Shatford is played by Mark Wahlberg and Dale “Murph” Murphy, the most experienced of the crew, is played by John C. Reilly. The other members of the troupe are played by William Fichtner, John Hawkes and Allen Payne. On land or on other ships we also find Diane Lane, “Bobby’s” girlfriend, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, captain of another fishing boat, or Karen Allen and Michael Ironside.
A tragic true story
The success and notoriety ofIn the middle of a storm are partly explained by the fact that it is a true story, which the film tells rather faithfully. Rather alone, since the Warner Bros. studios added fictional elements prior to the shipwreck and some points of the relationships between the characters, which the family of “Billy” Tyne, in particular, denounced as false, taking the studios to court.
But the film is well adapted from the story of journalist Sebastian Junger, published in 1998. Witnessing this “perfect storm” himself, Sebastian Junger later met the relatives of Andrea Gail’s disappearance and wrote his book In the middle of a storm from these testimonies. Wolfgang Petersen’s film then takes up this tragedy, using the real names of the shipwreck victims and their loved ones, to tell the story in an ultra-spectacular film. the disappearance ofAndrea Gail and his sailors. The wreck, like its crew, was never found.
Source: Cine Serie
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