In October of 1991, some 200 miles off the coast of Gloucester, Massachusetts, a collision of three monstrous storms left a sword fishing boat, the Andrea Gail, stranded in the high seas. This boat was defenseless against what meteorologists would call, The Perfect Storm. Not only does this sound like the perfect movie script, but it is based on a true story.
In the movie Captain Billy Tyne (George Clooney) realizing his fishermen were underpaid and overworked, decides to make the last fishing excursion of the season, and heads to distant waters where the fish are plentiful. Although leaving their homes and their loved ones required a lot of coercing and willpower from Tyne, the promise of a more successful catch convinces the crew of the Andrea Gail to depart. Soon, however, family members hear about the erratic nature of the trip combined with fading weather conditions, because of the season, and are concerned about the worth of the trip. .
Conflicts arise when Captain Tyne and his crew decide to ignore the advice of Linda Greenlaw, who captains another fishing boat, the Hannah Boden. Although Greenlaw warns Tyne over the radio about the storm brewing close ahead, her concerns go unheeded and the crew trudges onward.
The Perfect Storm slowly builds up to Andrea Gail's departure, and initially focuses on each fisherman's personal situations. For the most part these aren't unhappy men as some may perceive. The director and the cast seem to show us the joy that these men take from their work, whether they are setting bait lines, hooking in fish, packing fish with ice, or even facing the chance of death when a shark accidentally gets reeled in. I felt that the cast were very convincing in their roles that each one played. The ease in which the actors slip into character gives the movie a look and feel of what seems to be a home documentary or biography of their lives at sea. The men love what they do so much that they would risk their lives to get a good catch.
