Forces of Nature (1999)

A soon-to-be-married man encounters an exciting stranger after his plane suffers an accident on takeoff.

Director:

Bronwen Hughes

Writer:

Marc Lawrence

Stars:

Ben Affleck, Sandra Bullock, Maura Tierney

2 wins & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ben Affleck	...	Ben Holmes
Sandra Bullock	...	Sarah Lewis
Maura Tierney	...	Bridget Cahill
Steve Zahn	...	Alan
Blythe Danner	...	Virginia
Ronny Cox	...	Hadley
Michael Fairman	...	Richard Holmes
Richard Schiff	...	Joe
Athena Maria Bitzis	...	Juanita the Bull Tamer (as Athena Bitzis)
Afemo Omilami	...	Cab Driver
David Strickland	...	Steve Montgomery
Jack Kehler	...	Vic DeFranco
Janet Carroll	...	Barbara Holmes
Meredith Scott Lynn	...	Debbie
George Wallace	...	Max (as George D. Wallace)

Storyline

Ben Holmes, a professional book-jacket blurbologist, is trying to get to Savannah for his wedding. He just barely catches the last plane, but a seagull flies into the engine as the plane is taking off. All later flights are cancelled because of an approaching hurricane, so he is forced to hitch a ride in a Geo Metro with an attractive but eccentric woman named Sara.

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Plot Keywords:

marriage | geo metro | road trip | on the road | airplane accident | 

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Taglines:

Why watch the Force when you can watch... Forces of Nature?

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Genres:

Comedy | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for sensuality, language and a scene of drug use

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

19 March 1999 (USA)

Also Known As:

Fuerzas de la naturaleza

Filming Locations:

Executive Motor Hotel - 5215 W. Broad Street, Richmond, Virginia, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$75,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

£730,208 (UK) (7 May 1999)

Gross:

ESP 370,765,786 (Spain) (29 June 2001)

Company Credits

Production Co:

DreamWorks SKG, Roth-Arnold Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

105 min

Sound Mix:

DTS Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

In a scene early in the movie, the two leads are shown sitting in an outdoor location in front of a large rusty globe. This location is in the city of Savannah, although the two characters have not reached Savannah by that point of the story.

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Goofs

When Sarah is talking to her ex-husband in front of the bagel shop, the sky is supposedly very cloudy because of the storm, yet we see sunlight casting shadows on the street.

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Quotes

Ben Holmes: I haven't known you that long, but I think there may be something wrong with you.

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Connections

References Mod Squad (1968)

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Soundtracks

"La Virgen De La Macarena"
Written by Antonio Ortiz Calero & Bernardo Bautista Monterde
Performed by Banda El Toreo
Courtesy of BMG U.S. Latin under exclusive license from BMG Entertainment Mexico S. A. de C. V.

User Reviews

Surprising, better than I expected

After reading the back of the video box about the "whirlwind romance" and the plot about Ben heading towards his wedding and meeting a "free-spirited" woman who teaches him how to have fun, I didn't have much interest in seeing it. It sounded extremely trite, and I'm not too interested in Bullock or Affleck either. I was very surprised at the sharp dialogue and humor. And even though every frame of this film looked like a jeans commercial, I *liked* the cinematography and hip, colorful locales. Of course the whole thing was totally unbelievable and the various events that occur are a bit overdone... but I liked it anyway. I am a sucker for road movies, so that was part of the appeal for me... traveling, different locations (the laundromat, the snack bar with the giant globe and the Big KMart at 2AM). I expected Ben's bride-to-be to be a crashing bore or uptight priss, so the audience would root for Sarah and Ben. But she was funny and sharp also, and you don't feel like the marriage would suck all the life out of Ben as it seemed to have for others in the film. All of the things Ben overhears about marriage sucking is pretty funny. I only post here about movies that make an impression on me, whether good or bad... and this one made an impression. I liked it. And no one is more surprised about that than me.