Forces of Nature

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Forces of Nature

PG-13

Released Mar 19, 1999

1h 44m

Romance

Comedy

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Popcornmeter

46%

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67 Reviews

34%

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50,000+ Ratings

All Ben Holmes (Ben Affleck) wants to do is make it from New York to Savannah, Ga., in time for his wedding. When a seagull and a hurricane ruin any chance he has of flying there, Holmes reluctantly joins the quirky Sarah Lewis (Sandra Bullock) in a rental car for a road trip back to his waiting bride-to-be, Bridget Cahill (Maura Tierney). But nature seems to conspire against his every attempt at a timely return -- and in the meantime, he finds himself growing closer to Sarah.

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Critics Consensus

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.

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Richard Corliss

TIME Magazine

DreamWorks' first reprehensible fiasco.

Jun 14, 2009

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Joe Leydon

Variety

An extremely enjoyable neo-screwball comedy about attractive opposites on the road.

Mar 26, 2009

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Time Out

A bumbling and typically charmless latter-day studio screwball comedy.

Jan 26, 2006

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Marya E. Gates

Cool People Have Feelings, Too. (Substack)

Affleck and Bullock have great chemistry, Hughes has a flare for crafting images that feel almost operatic, and frankly I love that the film does not have a typical Hollywood ending.

Feb 12, 2024

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Tracy Moore

Common Sense Media

Over-the-top rom-com about marriage has dark, mature themes.

Rated: 2/5

Sep 23, 2014

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Maitland McDonagh

TV Guide

Make no mistake: This slackly paced picture doesn't gel. But it so consistently undermines the pastel-pretty conventions that currently rule the genre that some sneaky admiration is in order.

Rated: 2.5/4

Jun 14, 2009

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Xavier S

Romcom in need of being remade but with a better ending The fact that the film ended w/ Ben marryin' the girl like Bridget who cheated on him w/ her ex really pisses me off! He shoulda married Sarah, not her! They had more and better chemistry he and Bridget will even have! Ben shoulda found out about Bridget's cheating and left her to be w/ Sarah! I wish whoever wrote this movie knew what they were doing during its production.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

01/15/25

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Audience Member

Beyond awful. The script is horrendous, and there are so many unnecessary scenes or scenes that take too long to end. They make a lot of "marriage is awful" jokes (at least 10) and usually pair them with a sex joke. None of them are funny, and are basically just iterations of the same thing. Ben Affleck's acting is so, so bad and his character is dull. In real life, nobody would fall in love with that man, he has the personality of wood chips, and yet somehow he got 2 women to be in love with him. Him and Sarah (Sandra's character) have zero chemistry, but at least Sandra's acting is good. Speaking of her character, if you love a manic pixie dream girl, then she's the one for you. Zero redeeming qualities for this movie.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

10/10/24

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Michael B

Underrated! A very unique romcom /adventure story. Yeah some of the lines are cheese but the soundtrack, humor, thrilling story, values regarding marital anxieties etc., make for probably my favorite "chik-flik".

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

12/08/23

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Terry S

Cute but not cutesy--I laughed and liked it.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

12/06/22

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Audience Member

Such a painful watch. The story is sluggish and Affleck's performance is particularly uncharismatic.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

01/14/23

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Audience Member

exquisit casting and interesting directing choices, although maybe they arent the most suitable for this kind of plot

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

02/15/23

Full Review

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Bronwen Hughes

Director

Sandra Bullock

Sarah Lewis

Ben Affleck

Ben Holmes

Maura Tierney

Bridget

Steve Zahn

Alan

Blythe Danner

Virginia

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Synopsis

All Ben Holmes (Ben Affleck) wants to do is make it from New York to Savannah, Ga., in time for his wedding. When a seagull and a hurricane ruin any chance he has of flying there, Holmes reluctantly joins the quirky Sarah Lewis (Sandra Bullock) in a rental car for a road trip back to his waiting bride-to-be, Bridget Cahill (Maura Tierney). But nature seems to conspire against his every attempt at a timely return -- and in the meantime, he finds himself growing closer to Sarah.

Director: Bronwen Hughes
Producer: Susan Arnold, Ian Bryce, Donna Arkoff Roth
Screenwriter: Marc Lawrence
Distributor: DreamWorks SKG
Production Co: DreamWorks SKG, Roth-Arnold Productions
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Romance, Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 19, 1999, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): May 1, 2012
Box Office (Gross USA): $52.9M
Runtime: 1h 44m
Sound Mix: SDDS, Dolby Digital, DTS, Surround

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