Disney has always done well with their underdog stories like THE ROOKIE and MILLION DOLLAR ARM, but they have almost always been sports related. Now, they go for a different kind of inspirational story with THE FINEST HOURS. From LARS AND THE REAL GIRL and FRIGHT NIGHT director Craig Gillespie, THE FINEST HOURS feels like a cross between the upcoming EVEREST and the George Clooney movie THE PERFECT STORM.
With a cast led by Chris Pine and also featuring Casey Affleck, Ben Foster, Holliday Grainger, John Ortiz and Eric Bana, THE FINEST HOURS is not short on acting talent or special effects spectacle.
On February 18, 1952, a massive nor’easter struck New England, pummeling towns along the Eastern seaboard and wreaking havoc on the ships caught in its deadly path, including the SS Pendleton, a T-2 oil tanker bound for Boston, which was literally ripped in half, trapping more than 30 sailors inside its rapidly-sinking stern. As the senior officer on board, first assistant engineer Ray Sybert (Casey Affleck) soon realizes it is up to him to take charge of the frightened crew and inspire the men to set aside their differences and work together to ride out one of the worst storms to ever hit the East Coast. Meanwhile, as word of the disaster reaches the U.S. Coast Guard station in Chatham, Massachusetts, Warrant Officer Daniel Cluff (Eric Bana) orders a daring operation to rescue the stranded men. Despite overwhelming odds, four men, led by Coast Guard Captain Bernie Webber (Chris Pine), set out in a wooden lifeboat with an ill-equipped engine and little, if any, means of navigation, facing frigid temperatures, 60-foot high waves and hurricane-force winds.
Everyone here seems to be doing a great job, especially Casey Affleck who just looks perfectly cast. Even Eric Bana looks solid. Ben Foster, though not given much time in the trailer, seems to be his usual dedicated self. My only problem with this trailer is Chris Pine.
I enjoy him as Captain Kirk but he seems woefully miscast here. In fact, for the first half of the trailer, I couldn’t tell if there was something wrong with his face as he seems to be unable to emote in any scene. By the end, he looks to be along for the ride, but I got a bad vibe from this first preview of the film. Hopefully it is not an indicator of the film to come.
THE FINEST HOURS opens in theaters on January 29, 2016.