Message in a Bottle

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Message in a Bottle

PG-13

Released Feb 12, 1999

2h 5m

Romance

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

32%

Tomatometer

38 Reviews

66%

Popcornmeter

50,000+ Ratings

During her morning jog on the beach, journalist Theresa Osborne (Robin Wright Penn) discovers a bottle protruding from the sand. Inside it, she finds a heartbreaking, anonymous love letter. After her paper publishes the letter, Osborne tracks down the letter's reclusive author, world-weary widower Garret Blake (Kevin Costner), in the Carolinas. But, as Osborne finds herself falling hopelessly in love with Blake, she becomes wracked with guilt over the real impetus for her visit.

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Critics Consensus

Handsome-looking but dramatically inert, Message in a Bottle maroons a formidable cast in a trite romance that lacks spark.

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Owen Gleiberman

Entertainment Weekly

Rated: B

Sep 7, 2011

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Globe and Mail

Rated: 1.5/4

Mar 22, 2002

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Russell Smith

Austin Chronicle

Rated: 2/5

Jan 1, 2000

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Tim Brayton

Antagony & Ecstasy

Costner has a free pass to be as lazy as he can possibly be, and the result is one of the most smugly alienating romantic lead performances that I can quickly call to mind.

Rated: 3/10

Apr 3, 2012

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John J. Puccio

Movie Metropolis

If it had just quit while it was ahead....

Rated: 5/10

Apr 18, 2009

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John Venable

Supercala.com

Leaves one feeling empty.

Rated: 4/10

Dec 31, 2005

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Katie D

The ending was SO unsatisfying. The whole thing is ridiculous but the actors are so good in it. The ending ruined the whole movie.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

09/26/23

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Fi S

Dreadful adaption. Ironically set in a newspaper where words are everything, this a blank screen. Care factor -zero.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

09/22/23

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philip m

Beautiful, moving, well-acted and directed film. For once, a romance film without all the silliness.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

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Audience Member

It was going well until the melodrama went bonkers in the home stretch. I don't know what I was expecting with the Sparks novel adaptation, but I was hoping for less orchestral music and more dialogue.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

01/12/23

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Audience Member

I've seen this movie multiple times and I really like Robin Wright, but her journalism character comes across as too demanding for Kevin Costner who is a widow struggling to come to terms with the loss of his wife. Paul Newman is really good in this. I'm sure the book is better but I could not get into the book at all. The movie as a whole is okay and worth watching if you want a tear-jerker movie.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/01/23

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Audience Member

Totally forgettable.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

03/21/21

Full Review

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Luis Mandoki

Director

Kevin Costner

Garret Blake

Robin Wright

Theresa Osborne

Paul Newman

Dodge Blake

John Savage

Johnny Land

Illeana Douglas

Lina Paul

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Synopsis

During her morning jog on the beach, journalist Theresa Osborne (Robin Wright Penn) discovers a bottle protruding from the sand. Inside it, she finds a heartbreaking, anonymous love letter. After her paper publishes the letter, Osborne tracks down the letter's reclusive author, world-weary widower Garret Blake (Kevin Costner), in the Carolinas. But, as Osborne finds herself falling hopelessly in love with Blake, she becomes wracked with guilt over the real impetus for her visit.

Director: Luis Mandoki
Producer: Kevin Costner, Denise Di Novi, Jim Wilson
Screenwriter: Nicholas Sparks, Gerald Di Pego, Nicholas Sparks
Distributor: Warner Bros. Pictures, Warner Bros.
Production Co: Bel Air Entertainment, DiNovi Pictures, Tig Productions
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Romance
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 12, 1999, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Dec 1, 2010
Box Office (Gross USA): $52.8M
Runtime: 2h 5m
Sound Mix: SDDS, Dolby Digital, DTS, Surround

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