The Perfect Storm poster & wallpaper
Get movie widget Recommend it Add to Favorites

George Clooney, Mark Wahlberg, John C. Reilly, Diane Lane, William Fichtner ... see more see more... , John Hawkes , Allen Payne , Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio , Karen Allen , Cherry Jones , Bob Gunton , Christopher McDonald , Dash Mihok , Josh Hopkins , Michael Ironside , Rusty Schwimmer , Janet Wright , Billy Mayo

In October 1991, a dying tropical hurricane from Bermuda collided with a cold front from the Great Lakes, resulting in a "perfect storm" of previously unknown destructive impact that resulted in 100-f... read more read more...oot waves; tragically, the crew of a fishing boat was lost in the midst of the fearsome storm. Based on the best-selling book by Sebastian Junger, The Perfect Storm tells the story of the ship's brave and hard-working crew. Billy Tyne (George Clooney), captain of the Andrea Gail, hasn't had much luck finding catch on his most recent trips to sea, and with money short, he and his crew -- Bob Shatford (Mark Wahlberg), Dale Murphy (John C. Reilly), and David Sullivan (William Fichtner) set out again when they hear that the fish are running. Billy's hunch proves correct, but when the ship's refrigeration system goes haywire, they have to return to shore as quickly as possible before the fish spoil, sending them into the middle of the worst storm in history. The supporting cast includes Mary Elziabeth Mastrantonio, Diane Lane, Bob Gunton, and Karen Allen; Wolfgang Petersen, whose breakthrough film was the aquatic wartime drama Das Boot, directed. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Flixster Users

58% liked it

231,546 ratings

Critics

47% liked it

132 critics

PG-13, 2 hr. 9 min.

Directed by: Wolfgang Petersen, Allen Payne, Diane Lane, George Clooney, John C. Reilly, Mark Wahlberg, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio

Release Date: June 30, 2000

Invite friends to see

DVD Release Date: November 14, 2000

Get It:

Stats: 7,771 reviews

report incorrect info

Photos

The Perfect Storm The Perfect Storm Perfect Storm The Perfect Storm Perfect Storm The Perfect Storm Perfect Storm The Perfect Storm Book The Perfect Storm The Perfect Storm The Perfect Storm George Clooney in The Perfect Storm The Perfect Storm The Perfect Storm KISS The Perfect Storm The Perfect Storm
Upload a Photo | View All The Perfect Storm Photos

Your Rating


clear rating

Flixster Reviews (7,771)

  • spielberg00
    October 1, 2011
    spielberg00
    The thing that really irks me about THE PERFECT STORM is that I had read that it was a disaster film (and it's made pretty much clear in the title), but the actual disaster didn't get started for a whole forty minutes, which almost brought me to the point of thinking that "Perfec... read moret Storm" was some kind of metaphor.

    The basic layout is as follows:

    1-30 minutes - characters are introduced with enough relationship statuses, innuendos, overly charismatic drama to create an entire soap opera; 31-40 minutes - the characters leave their spouses/fiancà (C)es, board the ship, but continue with the non sequiturs and double entendres that make you groan, "Enough already!"; 41-120 minutes - over an hour of TITANIC-esque intensity and dazzling (but terrifying, considering this is based on a true story) disaster scenes--which is exciting, but it makes you think, "We go from soap opera...to disaster?", because the beginning does NOT make sense to the rest of the film; 121-128 minutes - the film is coming to an end, with slightly less intensity, but thankfully no "return of the soap opera"; 129 minutes - the film's over, folks, you can go home now.

    That's the gist of this mediocre movie. It's just what you expect of a shipwreck film.
  • DreamExtractor
    August 7, 2011
    DreamExtractor
    A movie that leads to nothing and you leave the theatre feeling crappy for seeing it. Its depressing, it leads to no conclusion, and i'm glad The Simpsons were bold enough to make fun of this crap. I never felt intense when watching it, and even with a all star cast it has noth... read moreing great about. Only reason I gave it a 1.5 is because the acting was decent. this film is not worth it.
  • TheDudeLebowski65
    April 17, 2011
    TheDudeLebowski65
    A good effort from Wolfgang Petersen, The Perfect Storm is about the 1991 Hurricane that struck the New England Coast. Unaware that the storm is coming a boat dubbed the Andrea Gail is stuck in the storm and the fisherman try to make it home alive. The Perfect Storm is a terrific... read more true story, packed with drama and action. The scope of the film is incredible. The storm itself is a sight to see on screen. The cast do an incredible at showing the immense dilemma that the characters are in. The Perfect Storm is a good film from Petersen, but considering it's made by the man who made Das Boot, this is slightly disappointing, but not by much. The film has a terrific story and a great cast, but you'd expect something more solid from the man who directed one of the greatest war films, right? But The Perfect Storm is still a good piece dramatic action. The cast do a fine job at bringing these characters to life, and you wish that they do survive the Hurricane. Unfortunately it is not to be. The Perfect Storm conveys a sense of human emotion perfectly, without making it feel too cheesy. The Perfect Storm relies on awesome special effects for the Hurricane scenes which make the film better than it is. The Perfect Storm is far from excellent, but it's definitely a solid action drama film with a top notch cast of actors. Wolfgang Petersen is a fine director, but this is of course not one of his strongest films. That honor belongs to Das Boot. The Perfect Storm is a thrilling film of survival against impossible odds, and sometimes those odds overcome the courage or insanity? of some men. A good, entertaining film.
  • crunchbunch
    January 27, 2011
    crunchbunch
    The Perfect Storm is abotu a group of fisherman who decide to brave it through a hurricane to save their catch and make some money.

    If you can ignore the fact that real fisherman respect the sea and would never be so reckless, The Perfect Storm is an exciting picture that real... read morely flexes its CGI muscles when the storm hits the boat.

    Fast paced and visually pleasing we will the sailors to fight the storm and survive and with Mark Wahlberg thankfully leaving his shirt on for once we can enjoy their plight as the raging waters oppose their passage.

    "I always find the fish. Always!"
  • fb733768972
    February 4, 2010
    fb733768972
    The title says it all, and more. I wished this movie to be good, and I was overwhelmed by it's greatness. The cast actually makes you believe that these things are happening. I did not expect the end, but it's okay, it had a great message, and I admire that 100%. This was an amaz... read moreing film!
  • jjnxn
    February 2, 2010
    jjnxn
    something to be appreciated not enjoyed.
  • fb619846742
    November 3, 2009
    fb619846742
    Definitely has some incredible special effects, but obvious cliches like two brothers fighting (Reilly and Fichtner), a love story (between Wahlberg and Lane), and a fearless and gruff commander (Clooney) weigh this movie down to a large degree. Certainly watchable, mainly due to... read more its slam-bang ending, but also certainly skip-able, basically because predictability surfaces on more than one occasion. Peterson has done far better.
  • SirPant
    September 24, 2009
    SirPant
    Far from a perfect film, Wolfgang Petersen has made better!
  • stormyweather980
    September 10, 2009
    stormyweather980
    Ever since I first saw the previews to "The Perfect Storm," I was dying to see the movie. I finally got to rent the movie and see it. Before watching it, I had noticed that overall the movie wasn't getting that great of reviews on Amazon, and I had someone tell me that it was a r... read moreip off. After watching it, I honestly can't say that I saw anything that wasn't great about the movie. Every single thing about the movie is great. It's based on a true story of a tragedy that took place during Hurricane Grace in the 90s. A captain (George Clooney) and his swordfishing crew take to the seas around Bermuda to try and catch as many fish as they can in order to earn a lot of money and impress their main employer. Everything is smooth sailing until they are caught up in the middle of what many called "The storm of the century." It's a huge hurricane and they're heading straight for the worst part of it. If they turn back to avoid the storm, their fish will rot and they won't get much money. But if they ride the storm out, they could still get their fish to the docks in time to get a good load of money, but they would be risking their lives a lot more by doing that than they would if they were to turn back.
    "The Perfect Storm" is a great movie in every way. The plot is easy to understand, it has some great special effects and suspense, and most of the actors do a great job to make this movie a success. I recommend anybody who wants to see a great movie to purchase "The Perfect Storm" as soon as they can. It's definitely one of the best movies of the year. NOTE: That was my Amazon review from the year 2000. Always love movies about weather and storms, so this was as up my alley as possible.
  • TheMachinist
    September 9, 2008
    TheMachinist
    The film starts up pretty slowly but when they head up for sea... it's showtime! The CGI storm sequences are one of the best I've seen. Saw it the first time when it was released and now again, and I can say that in comparison to films of today, it stands tall.

    But is the movie... read more any good? Like you all know, it's based on a true story. But did they really make the decisions they did in the movie? Probably not, cuz in the movie, they broke the first rule that all seaman obey. They didn't respect the power and will of the sea and tried to earn some money instead by making stupid choices. And as a seaman myself, that disturbed me a lot!

    Sure, it's entertaining and the ending is intense but it's hard to believe that the guys (R.I.P) would've chosen chance instead of choice...

View All The Perfect Storm Reviews

Critic Reviews

Rick Groen
March 22, 2002
Rick Groen, Globe and Mail

Think of something with the heart and soul of a Conrad yarn, yet buttressed by very special effects and shrewdly packaged for devotees of the Outdoor Living Network Full Review

Peter Travers
May 10, 2001
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

A sense of reality is essential, and it's sorely lacking.

Joel Siegel
April 24, 2001
Joel Siegel, Good Morning America

An awfully good film

J. Hoberman
January 1, 2000
J. Hoberman, Village Voice

Opens with a squall of anticipatory clichés. Full Review

Susan Wloszczyna
January 1, 2000
Susan Wloszczyna, USA Today

Soggy, cardboard-thin clichés

Kenneth Turan
January 1, 2000
Kenneth Turan, Los Angeles Times

Has noticeable problems with characterization and dialogue. But once that awesome storm ... gets cranked up, it's hard to remember what those difficulties were, let alone care too much about them. Full Review

James Berardinelli
January 1, 2000
James Berardinelli, ReelViews

Exciting, engaging, and, at times, majestic. Full Review

Owen Gleiberman
January 1, 2000
Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly

The Perfect Storm' looks and feels like too many other movies in which ships struggle to stay afloat as the mad seas thrash around them. Full Review

Stephen Holden
January 1, 2000
Stephen Holden, New York Times

After a while the unending tumult simply becomes monotonous. Full Review

Stephanie Zacharek
January 1, 2000
Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com

The Perfect Storm shook me, and the feeling lingered. Full Review

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

Rotten (59% or fewer critics rated the movie positively)

Cast

More Like This

Click a thumb to vote on that suggestion, or add your own suggestions.

  • The Guardian
    The Guardian (77%)
  • Poseidon
    Poseidon (75%)
  • Planet of the Apes
    Planet of the Apes (42%)
  • Category 7: The End of the World
    Category 7: The End of the World (0%)

More Movies like The Perfect Storm

Facts

No facts approved yet. Be the first

The Perfect Storm : Watch Free on TV

The Perfect Storm Trivia

  • In this movie the "Andrea Gale" left Gloucester, Mass, and headed for the fishing grounds of the North Atlantic? Name The Movie?  Answer »
  • The Perfect Storm was based on a real life storm that occured in 1991, what was the name of that storm?  Answer »
  • Who acted in these movies ?? - The departed - Four brothers - the perfect storm - the italian job  Answer »
  • Which actor or actress can be attributed to the following titles? Syriana Intolerable Cruelty Oceans 11 Batman and Robin The Perfect Storm  Answer »
More The Perfect Storm Trivia

Movie Quizzes

Create a Quiz |

All Quizzes

Video Clips

Upload a Video |

All The Perfect Storm Videos

Meet Other Fans

Add The Perfect Storm to favorites

Recent News

Submit a Story |

View The Perfect Storm News

Recent Lists

Make a List |

View All Lists

Most Popular Skin

butterfly34363 Skin by butterfly34363
19 Profiles
Add to Profile

More Skins