Director Craig Gillespie
Genre Action | Drama | History
Cast Chris Pine, Casey Affleck, Ben Foster, Eric Bana
Rating PG-13
Release Date January, 29th 2016
“The Coast Guard makes a daring rescue attempt off the coast of Cape Cod after a pair of oil tankers are destroyed during a blizzard in 1952.”
The Finest Hours is based on the book of the same name written by Michael J. Tougias and Casey Sherman. It describes what is widely considered the most daring rescue in the history of the United States Coast Guard, after a 1952 blizzard split two oil tankers in half off the coast off Cape Cod. The film was directed by relatively unknown director Craig Gillespie who has directed some big name films including Million Dollar Arm and Fright Night.
The trailer for The Finest Hours is misleading to say the least, as it seemed to resemble another film based on actual events that took place in Massachusetts. I am referring to the timeless classic The Perfect Storm, and the similarities do not go much further than location and boats during brutal storms. In my opinion George Clooney and Mark Wahlberg would be displeased with any sort of comparison. A film with such a strong and engaging story should be intense to the point of white knuckles gripping the arm rest but it just didn’t happen for me. I will admit that a few scenes had my blood pressure at unhealthy levels but it was very inconsistent.
The acting in The Finest Hours is sub par at best which is a letdown considering a solid cast, consisting of Chris Pine, Casey Affleck, and Ben Foster. Chris Pine had one of the worst Massachusetts accents put on display since Andy Sandberg mocked Mark Wahlberg on SNL (which was hilarious). Ben Foster had maybe his worst performance as an actor and he seemed genuinely bored with his role. The best performance was delivered by independent film sensation Casey Affleck as one of the men aboard the oil tanker. He seemed to be in command of his part and really took to his character. I also need to put some blame on what I would consider to be lazy writing. A film with a dramatic element like this requires some sort of connection to the characters but zero effort was put into this. I guess Disney spent too much money on the CGI and cut back the screenplay to make ends meet.
Overall, I was entertained and wouldn’t consider the film a total waste of money. The CGI was impressive and provided plenty of quality eye candy during the big scenes, but considering it is 2016 that should be expected. If you do decide to check this out in theaters, you might as well go IMAX and get the full effect. As a Disney film, The Finest Hours serves its apparent purpose as a fun, feel-good family flick that will keep everyone in good spirits. On the other hand, if you are looking for something more along the lines of a gritty survival story, this simply is not that movie.
