FFWD Weekly
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Film
by Richard ZThe Perfect Storm
starring George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg and John C. Reilly
directed by Wolfgang Petersen
Opens Friday, June 30At one time, German director Wolfgang Petersen was one of the finest and most versatile directors alive. In the early ’80s, he was at the helm of two completely different yet brilliantly conceived back-to-back films – Das Boot and The NeverEnding Story. Hollywood got a hold of Petersen and soon he was grinding out mediocre to good studio thrillers, the best being the recent Airforce One.
With The Perfect Storm, Petersen paddles one pool length back to his roots, balancing his undoubted sense of craft with a higher level of visual literacy – a consciousness that eludes modern masters like Emmerich, Cameron and even Spielberg. The Perfect Storm is still a studio film, lathered in special effects and digital technology, yet it explores new waters in the traditional man-against-nature conflict.
In October 1991, the six-man crew of the Andrea Gail, a weathered fishing boat on the Eastern Seaboard, faced one of the storms of the century. It was called "perfect" in that it involved the rare combination of three storms caught within a central vortex. Amazingly destructive, the storm is the basis for this story of simple fishermen against extraordinary odds.
The use of digital technology provides seaward visuals previously unseen in cinema – even the Titanic’s effects are outdated by the massive drenching of digitized pixels that this film employs.
The effects, however, are not always perfect, and when they don’t work you know it. As well, a second parallel story that literally pops out of nowhere adds another weak link to The Perfect Storm.
Yet despite these criticisms, Petersen unleashes a gale of heroism and personal endeavour through his casting choices. There’s a lingering effect to the true grit and bravery portrayed by actors George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg and John C. Reilly.
And much to Petersen’s credit, and hopefully a sign that his artistic clouds are beginning to part, The Perfect Storm also does not bend under a predictable Hollywood ending.
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