It's hard to believe that a small rescue boat survived such maneuvers in strong currents like that and don't they come multiple inbuilt compass?

The Finest Hours

The Finest Hours_360P

source: The Finest Hours

I was keen for this movie when I saw the trailers some time ago, as were my kids. At the time, I totally missed that it was "based upon a true story." A few days before seeing the film, I got a hold of the book and was thrilled to learn that it was an actual event and what's more, the anniversary of when it happened was in just a few days, February, 18th! Well, I challenged my kids to finish the book and I'd take them to see the movie. We all read it and were completely bowled over by the book and were eager to see the film. The film is well worth seeing. It's a ripping action film. The action sequences and suspense are riveting. The seas and storm, while not nearly as impressive as the actual event are impressively done. The acting was superb, though the characterizations were positively rotten. Chris Pine, Holiday Grainger, Casey Affleck and the rest were a joy to watch, not one bad performance. Though the performances were entertaining, the characterizations were not. The screenplay diverges wildly from the reality and that's a shame. Bernie Webber/Chris Pine was not riddled with self- doubt and ambivalence, nor was he ridiculed or held in low esteem by his co-workers and neighbors. Miriam/Holiday Grainger and he were married before the events took place and she was home in bed sick through out the entire event so had no role whatsoever. Grainger's character and scenes are whole-cloth and the character's behavior while quite believable in today's world would have been unheard of in 1952. Other reviewers have opined about why this or that happened, why a particular decision was made instead of doing something else. The staging of the story, as written for the screenplay creates quite a bit of confusion, whereas the reality of the situations really left no viable alternatives. Bernie Webber made the best decisions he could have made under the circumstances. Chris Pine's character got dragged along by the storm surge. As an aside, I think this movie showcases the disregard Hollywood holds for it's audience. Hollywood seems to think we are unable to grasp complex ideas so they feed us flashy special effects instead of solid stories. It is really a shame, especially in regards to a story like this where the heroes are real and we really need heroes. The heroism of the "coasties" shines in this story but not as brightly in this movie. I strongly urge anyone inspired by this film to read the book and I would recommend the film to anyone who enjoys man-against-the-elements adventures.

I walked into this movie looking for a good adventure/drama and walked out believing in miracles. First, this tanker breaks in half directly in the middle of a tank causing very little damage to the water-tight bulk-head. Second, a young Coast Guardsman does the near impossible and not only gets his boat out of the harbor, but does so without losing any of his men. Third, without a compass, stars or visibility he finds the Pendleton's stern. Fourth, the tanker has ended up on a shoal making the coast guard boat the only that that has to be maneuvered around (if I understand correctly a little movie-license was taken here as the crew was actually trying to stay off the shoals). Fifth, 33 men climbed down the ladder in near impossible conditions, dropping into either the boat or water and only 1 was lost. Sixth, a boat designed to carry a crew of 4 with 12 passengers (where an experienced crewman estimated the most they could hold was 22) actually carried 36 people. And finally, without any navigational aide the massively over-loaded boat made it back into the bay and to the town's dock - without losing one person along the way. If I didn't know it was a true story I would have thought I was watching somebodies over-done imagination. But each of the above items is true and did happen. Forget the incredibly great special effects, the story alone is worth going to see.

In 1950, in Cape Cod in Massachusetts, the US Coast Guard station in Chatham receives a distress signal from the oil tankers SS Pendleton and SS Fort Mercer. Commander Daniel Cluff (Eric Bana) assigns the crew formed by Bernie Webber (Chris Pine), Richard Livesey (Ben Foster), Andy Fitzgerald (Kyle Gallner) and Ervin Maske (John Magaro) to rescue the crew of the SS Pendleton in a small enclosed lifeboat. Cluff is warned about the intensity of the storm by Bernie and also by his girlfriend Miriam (Holliday Grainger) but he keeps the order. Meanwhile the SS Pendleton has broken and lost his forward part and his skilled and experienced engineer Ray Sybert (Casey Affleck) assumes the command of the survivors. He uses his abilities to steer the stern in a safer position, grounding it on an unstable bank of sand to avoid sinking. "The Finest Hours" is based on the most daring rescue of a crew in a blizzard with a small enclosed lifeboat-rescue boat. The heroic work of the US Coast Guard crew is impressive, saving thirty-two survivors from the SS Pendleton. The ability of the engineer Ray Sybert is also praiseworthy. The film is technically impressive with breathtaking action scenes of the rescue operation. The romance is silly and only completes the running time. My vote is seven. Title (Brazil): "Horas Decisivas" ("Decisive Hours")

Now, that's what I call a good film. It may still be January, but The Finest Hours definitely doesn't feel like a film that came out in the midst of Hollywood's dumping ground month. It's directed by Craig Gillespie and stars Chris Pine, Casey Affleck, Ben Foster, Holliday Grainger, and Eric Bana. It tells the story of one of the most daring and dangerous U.S. Coast Guard missions in history as Bernie Webber, played by Pine, led a crew aboard a motor boat to save the survivors of the splitting of the SS Pendleton. First off, it's unbelievable that this is even a true story. I constantly thought to myself throughout the film that there's no way they actually get through this alive. It's even more amazing when you see the real life pictures and records of the events in the closing credits. It's also one of those films that makes you enjoy your time away from the storms on water and appreciate every second on land. But besides the remarkable story, I got sucked in with the acting of Pine, Affleck, and Grainger. Grainger plays Pine's love interest back home in Massachusetts and at times the screen time on her can become distracting. Grainger was good in the role, but the time spent on the motor boat and Affleck's crew on the ship was much more intriguing. Another understandable complaint this film has been getting is its noticeable CGI. When you compare it to films like Life of Pi, Interstellar, or even Titanic from 20 years ago, it doesn't even come close to holding its own against those. But with its lower budget and poignant story, I think you can forgive some of its more obviously green screen moments. The film does have plenty of 'true story clichés' used to bring our emotions to the breaking point, but I never felt like they over did it. I was so enthralled with what was happening that when the film does get to its emotional climax, I had to hold back tears. That's a tribute to Gillespie's direction and the incredible score by the newly Oscar nominated, Carter Burwell. +Unbelievable story +Great lead performances +Timely score -Some CGI overstayed its welcome -Some cuts back to Grainger's character weren't necessary 7.7/10

This film starts kinda slow and unrelated to the story ( you expect to see) and it is rather slow paced at the beginning, but soon it gets more packed with action and rests until the end. I enjoyed the film. It was even touching at the end. The fact that it is based on the true story does give it a plus. The breaking of a ship ( two, in fact) in haft because of the storm was really wow! I really got into the scene when they showed the first breaking of the ship. It was intense and really well done. I guess I liked those scenes which were filmed inside of the ship and all the hard work being done to prevent the sinking of it that caught my attention the most and the ones I really enjoyed. However, the relations between the sailors ( in the ship and at the land were somewhat superficially done and yes, you get that some of them are not liking each other, but, why is that is not rally explained and I though it should have been) The love story that also goes parallel to the disaster at sea is sometimes sweet but most of the time is kinda blah and maybe it should have been cut in entirety from the film. It does add something to the film, but not that much in reality. But I guess it is important as it is one of the true facts. All in all, not bad. I give it a rating eight!

Unfortunately I have been to sea on an old converted (to a bulk carrier) T2 Tanker ... and worked on and stood a watch in the engine room. These ships 'engines' were Steam Turbo Electric. The only way these engine rooms could have been that quiet ... is if the plant was completely shut down. The men on the tanker would not have been able to stand up. There is no "engine intake" or "ahead" or astern" nozzles. So, for me, that part of the movie was pretty sad ... at least give these men the respect of attempting to make it realistic? The Coast Guard scenes? Don't know wasn't in the CG. However ... for that little boat to completely submerge (several times)and still have the engine running? The men involved earned some respect here ... this movie fails miserably and fails to acknowledge (through any kind of realism) the acts it took to bring those men home. The other period details were pretty good even though it was mostly CG. Maybe they should have somebody that has actually been to sea? So I'm going with the lowest I can give. Basing a movie on a true story is not a license to degrade it. It is 117 (wasted) minutes of my life I will never get back.