imagemap

MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE

Lee Su Fern
Directed by: Luis Mandoki
Written by: Nicholas Sparks(novel), Gerald Di Pego
Starring: Kevin Costner, Robin Wright Penn, John Savage, Illeana Douglas and Paul Newman.
Official Web Site: www.message-bottle.com
This Review Filed: April 5, 1999.
" You choose ­ the past or the future. Pick one and stick with it."
I think that if anyone were to consider watching this film with its cast of actors, one would certainly be in a dilemma as to whether the $7.00 you paid would be worth it. The length of it certainly would as the film stretches to a good almost 3 hours. But you might think that Kevin Costner, Paul Newman and Robbie Coltrane (the Scottish-born actor in Nuns on the Run, Tomorrow Never Dies, Cracker amongst other shows) is a strange combination. You might almost think it is worth it despite having Kevin Costner as the male lead. Well, weighing up all possibilities, it is.

[ Pic from Film ] MESSAGE IN A BOTTLE is a film about love. But it is not simply a love story. It is also a story about life and changes, about coming to terms with losses and truths. Theresa (Robin Wright Penn), whilst on holiday, finds a message in a bottle that is washed ashore. As luck would have it, she is a researcher for the Chicago Tribune and has all resources (including time!) made available to her to search out this man whose love letter in the bottle has moved Theresa into action. A divorcee having to come to terms with her failed relationship, Theresa is intrigued by this manıs intense pure love for Catherine, the object of the letter.

She manages to trace the bottle and its contents to a small town in North Carolina and Garrett (Kevin Costner). Not before long, the beauty and quaintness of the North Carolina coastline has her falling deeply in love with the town and Garrett. A perfect setting for a fairy tale love story except for the reality of Garrettıs dead wife (Catherine) and Theresaıs job and son in Chicago. Deathly afraid of being hurt, she fails to tell Garrett of her true intentions which ends in disastrous results.

Many might find this film long drawn and too slow for their liking, but it suited me fine. One of the amazing things about this filmıs makers is how they manage to shoot this film like a book. The film plays on as if one was reading the descriptions of an author. Whilst when one reads a book, oneıs imagination is set free by trying to picture the scene the author is describing, here, the picture paints the proverbial Œthousand wordsı and you are left trying to determine what words can be used to describe such a breathtaking scenery. At the end, you are speechless and left to enjoy the rugged beauty of the "Tempest Sea." The cinematography of the unpredictable temperament of the North Carolina and Maine coastlines (where this film was shot) showed a beauty and strength of the sea, which one could identify with about life. Director of photography Caleb Deschanelıs use of light is perfect in capturing the changing moods of the day to show the correlation between the unpredictability of the sea and life.

[ Pic from Film ] We are presented with a strong cast of actors ­ Robin Wright Penn plays Theresa with such honesty and vulnerability. But the actors that steal the cake are the supporting cast consisting of Robbie Coltrane as Charlie, Theresaıs editor in the Tribune and Paul Newman as Dodge, Garrettıs father. Whilst Robbie Coltrane provides some light-hearted moments with his wry Scottish humour (with his Œmotorı mouth running on youıd think it wasnıt scripted!), Paul Newmanıs happy-go-lucky character isnıt as straightforward as he would like to be. His life in the town and his relationship with Garrett come to head, as everything else does, when Theresa steps into both Garrettıs and Dodgeıs life. Layers can be peeled off both these characters as their actors do more than capable jobs.

What is most disappointing and expected however is Kevin Costnerıs portrayal of Garrett. Scriptwriter Gerald DiPegoıs translation of Nicholas Sparksıs novel of the same name is impeccable, giving each character multi-dimensions. Yet with the simplest of men and the most complex of characters, Kevin Costner does a disservice to the character of Garrett, Gerald DiPego and Nicholas Sparks. Like previous films such as Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves, Kevin Costner is once again overshadowed by his supporting cast. His one-dimensional portrayal of Garrett which required so much more intensity is lost and all we are witness to is a boring man with a big hang up about his dead wife, nothing else. The audience only witnesses Theresaıs love for him. We do not feel his dilemma between Catherine and Theresa nor his intense affection for Theresa. For Costner, the script appears to be read rather than acted. In the end, Garrett becomes a man whining about lost love rather than one who is emotionally crippled as a result of the death of his beloved wife.

This film stars many great names such as composer Gabriel Yared (Oscar winner for THE ENGLISH PATIENT), director Luis Mandoki (WHITE PALACE, WHEN A MAN LOVES A WOMAN) and producers Denise Di Novi (LITTLE WOMEN, JAMES AND THE GIANT PEACH), Jim Wilson (DANCES WITH WOLVES, THE BODYGUARD) and Kevin Costner. The haunting tunes of Sarah Machlan and Sheryl Crow grace the soundtrack of this beautiful, haunting story about love lost and found.

Verdict: Tearjerker film for the weepies. Beautiful cinematography and haunting melodies make you want to fly to Maine and North Carolina to see the coastlines and marry a ship builder

The Flying Inkpot's Rating System

* Wait for the TV2 broadcast.
** A little creaky, but still better than staying at home with Gotcha!
*** Pretty good, bring a friend.
**** Amazing, potent stuff.
***** Perfection. See it twice.

Read InkVault current film reviews at The Flying Inkpot
Read archived movie reviews at The Flying Inkpot.
v


Explore the Flying Inkpot

They're Alive!
Concert Reviews

Bit deadish:

Other Resources at The Flying Inkpot
Zine Scene Newslinks Movie Resources Booklinks
Chantelle L'amour Letters Page Inkvault Poetry
Home

Readers' Comments

From: Ben (SSpyrison@msn.com / Thursday, August 5, 1999 at 05:04:25)

Make Money FAST!!!! Posted by Ben SERIOUSLY NO SCAMS! LOTS OF CASH, FAST AND COMPLETELY LEGAL, THIS REALLY WORKS!! THIS REALLY CAN MAKE YOU EASY MONEY!! IT WORKS!!! BUT YOU HAVE TO FOLLOW IT TO A LETTER FOR IT TO WORK!!!! A little while back, I was browsing through newsgroups, just like you are now, and came across an article similar to this that said you could make thousands of dollars within weeks with only an initial investment of $6.00! So I thought," Yeah, right, this must be a scam", but like most of us, I was curious, so I kept reading. Anyway, it said that you send $1.00 to each of the 6 names and address stated in the article. You then place your own name and address in the bottom of the list at #6, and post the article in at least 200 newsgroups. (There are thousands) No catch, that was it. So after thinking it over, and talking to a few people first, I thought about trying it. I figured what have I got to lose except 6 stamps and $6.00, right? Like most of us I was a little skeptical and a little worried about the legal aspects of it all. So I checked it out with the U.S. Post Office (1-800-725-2161) and they confirmed that it is indeed legal! Then I invested the measly $6.00. Well GUESS WHAT!!... within 7 days, I started getting money in the mail! I was shocked! I figured it would end soon, but the money just kept coming in. In my first week, I made about $25.00. By the end of the second week I had made a total of over $1,000.00! In the third week I had over $10,000.00 and it's still growing. This is now my fourth week and I have made a total of just over $42,000.00 and it's still coming in rapidly. It's certainly worth $6.00, and 6 stamps. Let me tell you how this works and most importantly, why it works....also, make sure you print a copy of this article NOW, so you can get the information off of it as you need it. STEP 1: Get 6 separate pieces of paper and write the following on each piece of paper "PLEASE PUT ME ON YOUR MAILING LIST." Now get 6 US $1.00 bills and place ONE inside EACH of the 6 pieces of paper so the bill will not be seen through the envelope to prevent thievery. Next, place one paper in each of the 6 envelopes and seal them. You should now have 6 sealed envelopes, each with a piece of paper stating the above phrase, your name and address, and a $1.00 bill. What you are doing is creating a service by this. THIS IS ABSOLUTELY LEGAL! Mail the 6 envelopes to the following addresses: 1) Alice, 3204 SW Mitchell Ct., Portland, OR 97201 2) Ike, 2900 Canby Ct. , Northfeild, Mn 55057 3) D.Gerow, P.O. Box 579574 Modesto, Ca 95357-9574) 4) Randall Hickman New Market, TN 37820 5) Jack 6342 S.E.83rd Portland, OR.97266 6) Ben Spyrison 3175 West Forest Rd. Freeport, Il. 61032 ..... STEP 2: Now take the #1 name off the list that you see above, move the other names up (6 becomes 5, 5 becomes 4, etc...) and add YOUR Name as number 6 on the list. STEP 3: Change anything you need to, but try to keep this article as close to original as possible. Now, post your amended article to at least 200 newsgroups. (I think there are close to 24,000 groups) All you need is 200, but remember, the more you post, the more money you make! ---DIRECTIONS ---HOW TO POST TO NEWSGROUPS---- Step 1) You do not need to re-type this entire letter to do your own posting. Simply put your cursor at the beginning of this letter and drag your cursor to the bottom of this document, and select 'copy' from the edit menu. This will copy the entire letter into the computers memory. Step 2) Open a blank "notepad" file under accessories in windows and place your cursor at the top of the blank page. From the 'edit' menu select 'paste'. This will paste a copy of the letter into notepad so that you can add your name to the list. Step 3) Save your new notepad file as a .txt file. If you want to do your postings in different sittings, you'll always have this file to go back to. Step 4) Use Netscape or Internet explorer and try searching for various newsgroups (on-line forums, message boards, chat sites, discussions.) Step 5) Visit these message boards and post this article as a new message by highlighting the text of this letter and selecting paste from the edit menu. Fill in the Subject, this will be the header that everyone sees as they scroll through the list of postings in a particular group, click the post message button. You're done with your first one! Congratulations...THAT'S IT! All you have to do is jump to different newsgroupes and post away, after you get the hang of it, it will take about 30 seconds for each newsgroup! **REMEMBER, THE MORE NEWSGROUPS YOU POST IN, THE MORE MONEY YOU WILL MAKE!! BUT YOU HAVE TO POST A MINIMUM OF 200** That's it! You will begin reciving money from around the world within days! You may eventually wany to rent a P.O.Box due to the large amount of mail you will receive. If you wish to stay anonymous, you can invent a name to use, as long as the postman will deliver it. **JUST MAKE SURE ALL THE ADDRESSES ARE CORRECT.** Now the WHY part: Out of 200 postings, say I receive only 5 replies (a very low example). So then I made $5.00 with my name at #6 on the letter. Now, each of the 5 persons who just sent me $1.00 make the MINIMUM 200 postings, each with my name at #5 and only 5 persons respond to each of the original 5, that is another $25.00 for me, now those 25 each make 200 MINIMUM posts with my name at #4 and only 5 replies each, I will bring in an additional $125.00! Now, those 125 persons turn around and post the MINIMUM 200 with my name at #3 and only receive 5 replies each, I will make an additional $626.00! OK, now here is the fun part, each of those 625 persons post a MINIMUM 200 letters with my name at #2 and they each only receive 5 replies, that just made me $3,125.00!!! Those 3,125 persons will all deliver this message to 200 newsgroups with my name at #1 and if still 5 persons per 200 newsgroups react I will receive $15,625,00! With a original investment of only $6.00! AMAZING! When your name is no longer on the list, you just take the latest posting in the newsgroups, and send out another $6.00 to names on the list, putting your name at number 6 again. And start posting again. The thing to remember is, do you realize that thousands of people all over the world are joining the internet and reading these articles everyday, JUST LIKE YOU are now!! So can you afford $6.00 and see if it really works?? I think so... People have said, "what if the plan is played out and no one sends you the money? So what! What are the chances of that happening when there are tons of new honest users and new honest people who are joining the internet and newsgroups everyday and are willing to give it a try? Estimates are at 20,000 to 50,000 new users, every day, with thousands of those joining the actual internet. Remember, play FAIRLY and HONESTLY and this will work. thanks for participating