Forces of Nature (1999 film)

CinematographyElliot Davis
David StocktonEdited byCraig WoodMusic byJohn PowellDistributed byDreamWorks Pictures105 minutesCountryUnited StatesLanguageEnglishBudget$75 million^[1]Box office$93.9 million

Forces of Nature is a 1999 American romantic comedy film directed by Bronwen Hughes, and starring Ben Affleck and Sandra Bullock.

Ben and Sarah meet when their plane to Savannah has a freak accident before takeoff. As they both urgently need to arrive there ASAP, they band together, having many misadventures along the way.

The film was released in US theaters on March 19, 1999.

Ben Holmes is a "blurb" writer responsible for writing the short introductions on the sleeves of hardcover books. On his way from his home in NYC to Savannah, Georgia for his wedding to Bridget, he is already anxious about flying. His nerves are worsened when he's seated next to Sarah, a free-spirited drifter who talks to Ben immediately.

On takeoff, a bird flies into one of the engines, causing a flameout. Now terrified to get on another plane, along with almost everyone else on board, Ben shares a car rental with Sarah and another passenger, Vic.

Numerous obstacles arise to prevent Ben from getting to his wedding. First, Vic smoking marijuana while driving gets them arrested. Ben and Sarah manage to get released then get train tickets to Georgia. While sharing a moment on top of a train car, screaming into the picturesque landscape while the train is stopped, their train has separated. So, when they climb down, they discover they are now headed to Chicago.

Disembarking from the moving train, they get out of the rain in a KMart. There, they buy dry clothes and bond while discussing Ben's insecurity about getting married. Sarah reveals she's already done it twice and is traveling to Savannah to collect a large sum of money from the sale of a bagel shop that she opened with her estranged husband, Carl.

The next day, Sarah discovers Carl is attempting to thwart the sale, so asks Ben to pretend to be her husband once in Savannah. She explains that she plans to give her 10 year-old son from her first marriage, who she hasn't seen in two years, the money to mend fences between them. Ben agrees to help, so Sarah convinces him to pretend to be her surgeon husband to charm their way onto a Florida-bound bus of retirees.

At the first overnight stop, Ben finds himself increasingly attracted to Sarah. He encounters his best man, Alan and Bridget's maid of honor, Debbie in the hotel lobby. They soon learn of Ben and Sarah's deception, which Debbie believes includes infidelity to Bridget. Furious, she hurries to Savannah with Alan to tell the bride.

In their hotel room, Ben angrily blames Sarah for disrupting his life. She accuses him of being afraid to live honestly. They begin to kiss, but Ben stops himself and they leave to collect the money his parents have wired him, only to discover the bank is on fire. Ben and Sarah both laugh hysterically, wondering what else could go wrong, and begin kissing again. Back at the hotel the retirees, who have discovered their lie, confront them, so they flee.

Sarah recalls seeing a cheap car for sale in town, so offers to striptease in a local bar to raise the money for it. The bartender, however, asks Ben to dance instead, as it's a gay bar. He is nervous at first, but soon gets into the dance and earns enough to buy the car.

On the road to Savannah, Ben tells Sarah he's prepared to cancel the wedding, but she says it would be rash after only knowing each other a short time. A hurricane approaches Savannah, and the harsh weather forces them to abandon the convertible and run the rest of the way to the wedding. When Ben finds Bridget, he realizes he does love her and wants to spend his life with her. Sarah witnesses their reunion and leaves quietly.

Ben and Bridget go on their honeymoon and get married in Hawaii. Sarah visits her son and reconciles with him. Ben states in a voiceover that he hopes that wherever Sarah is that she has found happiness.

Filming took place over three days at South of the Border, a tourist attraction near Dillon, South Carolina,^[2] and in Savannah, Georgia. The Joseph Johnson House, a private home on Craven Street in Beaufort, South Carolina known as "The Castle", was used as the Cahill house.^[2][3]

Forces of Nature was released on DVD, VHS, and LaserDisc on September 14, 1999.^[4]

Forces of Nature collected $13.5 million during its opening weekend, ranking in first place at the box office above True Crime and Analyze This.^[5] In its second weekend, it would then earn $9.4 million.^[6] The film was overtaken by The Matrix in its third weekend after spending two weeks at the number one spot.^[7]

On Rotten Tomatoes, the film has an approval rating of 46% based on 67 reviews, with an average rating of 5.3/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "A distinct lack of chemistry between Ben Affleck and Sandra Bullock, coupled with a screwball sensibility that's a touch too screwy, scupper Forces of Nature's modest ambition to serve up romantic charm."^[8] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 46 out of 100, based on 26 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".^[9] Audiences surveyed by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "B−" on scale of A+ to F.^[10]

• Forces of Nature at IMDb
• Forces of Nature at AllMovie
• Forces of Nature at Rotten Tomatoes
• Forces of Nature at Box Office Mojo