Forces of Nature

The best way to dismiss Forces of Nature is to label it as an unsuccessful attempt to combine the premises of Planes, Trains, and Automobiles with My Best Friend’s Wedding along with a smidgen of the Hope and Crosby "On the Road" movie series. Throw in some of Pretty Woman for good measure. The result is a hodgepodge of contrivances with an incredulous ending that will leave you feeling less than satisfied.

Ben (Ben Affleck) is a book-jacket blurb writer from New York who is flying to Savannah for his wedding with Bridget (Maura Tierney). The plane aborts its takeoff. When he decides against flying again, Ben hooks up with a fellow passenger, Sarah (Sandra Bullock).

The two of them have a series of misadventures as they travel together to Savannah. First, they end up with a rental car driver who is being chased by the police for drug dealing. Then they take a train. Then they hop on a bus full of senior citizens. Then they buy a car for $150.

In the meantime, Ben predictably falls for Sarah, questioning his pending nuptials to Bridget. Together the two, who are complete opposites, begin to bond as they stay in a motel room, visit an all-night K Mart, go to a laundromat, and wind up in a gay nightclub. Ben drops his pants to raise money to buy the wreck. This scene belongs on the cutting room floor.

Usually I see movies in a near-empty theater on a Friday afternoon. This one was packed to the brim, especially with a lot of high school kids on spring break. There was a lot of laughter from the audience, but I’m not buying it. Forces of Nature is a major miss.

There is no chemistry between Affleck and Bullock. Affleck is very subdued in his performance, resembling a human sphinx on screen. He’s a good looking guy, but devoid of any charisma in this movie.

I don’t know what’s happened to Sandra Bullock. This is her third dud movie in a row. In this one, she has purple streaks in her hair and wears more black eye makeup than Lilian Munster. As the movie progresses, Sarah’s live wire personality begins to expose more about her checkered background. In real life, Ben would have screamed, "Let me off at the next stop!" As an audience member, I wanted to do the same.