"The Finest Hours" tells the incredible true story of one of the greatest rescues in Coast Guard history, but overall the film is nothing more than a mildly exciting, crowd-pleasing interpretation of this event.
Starring Chris Pine, Casey Affleck, Ben Foster, Holliday Grainger, John Ortiz and Eric Bana, this sea adventure-disaster film from Disney takes place in 1952, has an old-fashioned style to it, uses decent special effects, features known actors, tells an appealing story and does just about everything right, but it's one of those films that's just not that great.
Based on "The Finest Hours: The True Story of the U.S. Coast Guard's Most Daring Sea Rescue," by Michael J. Tougias and Casey Sherman, "The Finest Hours" details the rescue mission that took place in 1952 off the coast of Cape Cod, when two oil tankers, the SS Fort Mercer and SS Pendleton, were each split in half and destroyed by massive winds and waves from a serious nor'easter, or macro-scale storm along the upper East Coast of the United States.
On board the SS Pendleton, an engineer/mechanic named Ray Sybert (Affleck), finds ways to keep half of the ship afloat to give more time for help to come, while Boatswains Mate First Class, Bernard Webber (Pine), a follow-the-rules younger member of the Coast Guard, takes a crew of three and a small motor lifeboat out to sea at night and during a large storm, and against all odds rescues nearly all of the tanker's men.
This film is very different than most others today. It takes place in the 1950s, and thus has a look and feel of that time period. Vintage cars, clothing, a sense of charm and a basic way of life; it was a simpler time. Maybe this is why the film feels so slow to me. It's always nice to see a true story of heroism or an exciting event, but the film just feels bland. While there is clearly much at stake, I didn't really feel a strong connection to any of the characters or find much reason to invest or root for anyone, and aside from the obvious, there are not many extremely likeable characters.
The acting is decent, aside from Pine, who doesn't seem to be all there at times or appears to hold back, simply following the rules to a fault. The special effects are average, where you can tell they used a good amount of CGI or possibly it was shot in a tank for the water and action-disaster scenes. Overall, it looks pretty good and mostly natural throughout. The story is appealing, as both Pine and Affleck's characters do something good or brave that others doubt, but they ultimately save many lives.
For audiences who don't go to the movies anymore because they think most of them are too filled with special effects, science fiction or fantasy related, over-the-top, crude or action packed, this traditional type of film is just for you. It's a safe, old-fashioned, likeable movie about young romance and being a hero despite the odds, and it dramatizes a historical American sea adventure and disaster, which is based on true events.
The film is naturally receiving mixed reviews, as it is just enough adventure for some while falling short for many others, myself included. Because it is based on real events and does have much going for it, it won't be a total loss for some. Based on an event this inspiring and heroic, I would like to have seen a better film worthy of the story.
Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars.
"The Finest Hours" is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of peril. Running time is 1 hour and 57 minutes.
