Forces of Nature (1999) Sandra Bullock, Ben Affleck, Maura Tierney, Steve Zahn, Blythe Danner, Ronny Cox, Joe Don Baker, Jack Kehler, Meredith Scott Lynn, David Strickland. Written by Marc Lawrence. Directed by Bronwen Hughes. 104 minutes. Rated PG-13, 3.5 stars (out of five stars)
Review by Ed Johnson-Ott, NUVO Newsweekly www.nuvo-online.com Archive reviews at http://us.imdb.com/M/reviews_by?Edward+Johnson-ott To receive reviews by e-mail at no charge, send subscription requests to pbbp24a@prodigy.com
In 1996, while working on a story about the film "Going All The Way," I served as an extra for a couple of days, affording me the opportunity to chat with the cast on a relaxed basis. During one conversation with Jeremy Davies, he noted that while we had talked several times, I had yet to speak with co-star Ben Affleck. "You really should connect with Ben," said the amiable, self-effacing actor, "he's got a lot going on. He co- wrote a movie that's coming out this Christmas and the screenplay is really terrific." I agreed to interview Affleck, but never got around to it. For a guy playing a charismatic jock, Affleck seemed flat, uninteresting and not worth the bother.
Even after the release of "Good Will Hunting," the wonderful film to which Davies referred, I didn't regret passing Affleck over. His growing status as a sex symbol left me mystified and, as an actor, he seemed merely serviceable. From "Armageddon" through "Shakespeare in Love," I simply didn't understand all the fuss about Ben Affleck, until about four hours ago, when I saw "Forces of Nature."
Affleck is sweet, disarming and utterly natural in the romantic road comedy. Working in turns with Sandra Bullock and Maura Tierney, he hits just the right notes to establish a winning chemistry with each. Thanks to fine performances from the uniformly strong cast, a surprisingly smart, unpredictable plot and some jazzy visuals, "Forces of Nature" overcomes pacing problems to emerge a winner.
Affleck plays Ben Holmes, a reserved copywriter about to marry the winsome Bridget ("NewsRadio's" Maura Tierney) at her parents' home in Savannah. Shortly after meeting fellow passenger Sarah (Sandra Bullock) at a New York airport, their plane blows an engine, skids off the runway and leaves a traumatized Ben determined to seek alternate transportation to the South. Sarah joins him and, faster than you can say "Planes, Trains and Automobiles," Ben's carefully arranged life is turned upside down.
Their contrived misadventures are amusing, but the rewards of "Forces of Nature" come from the characterizations. Writer Marc Lawrence deserves a great deal of credit for integrity. Elderly people play a large part in the story, but Lawrence never mocks or trivializes them. Ben and Sarah squabble, but never become shrill. The delightful Maura Tierney's Bridget, while playing a secondary role as the anxious bride-to-be in Savannah, is allowed to be a real person rather than just a plot device. And the ending, in open defiance of contemporary date-movie conventions, is both ethical and unexpected.
The film boasts some nice eye candy as well. A couple scampers through a tire graveyard while hail falls in gorgeous slow-motion. Later, the style is successfully revisited during a enchanting overhead shot of slo-mo raindrops. Perhaps the loveliest scene occurs late in the film, when two characters have a key exchange while a wind-storm surrounds them in a otherworldly swirl straight out of a fairy tale.
In addition to Affleck's disarming performance, Bullock finally makes amends for the godawful "Speed 2: Cruise Control." As a damaged soul desperately clinging to a free-spirit persona, her work here could aptly be subtitled "How Sandra Got Her Groove Back." Beneath her sprightly characterization lies an air of melancholy that gives her a resonance lacking in most of her recent films. It's nice to see Bullock back on track again.
Affleck and Bullock are terrific together, particularly in a riotous strip scene in a gay bar that manages to be funny without pandering or reinforcing stereotypes. Almost as good is a segment where the cash- strapped couple race to pick up some money wired to a telegraph office, only to find the building engulfed in flames. "I think I'll just sit here, '' Ben chuckles, "and wait for the locusts to come."
The production has a few too many MTV moments, and the film bogs down in spots, crossing the line between leisurely and languid, but the lapses are forgivable due to the fine blend of humor and intelligence. Along with the laughs is a quiet examination of the nature of love and commitment, presented with welcome understatement. When the film reaches its climax, you may be surprised with the resolution, but you'll certainly respect it.
"Forces of Nature" combines the sensibility of vintage screwball comedies with a maturity rarely seen on screen these days. And it provides Ben Affleck with a whale of a showcase for his talents. In the unlikely event of my chatting with Jeremy Davies again, one thing's for sure: if he suggests that I talk with a talented unknown, I'll take his advice.
© 1999 Ed Johnson-Ott
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