# Message in a Bottle (film)

Message in a Bottle is a 1999 American romantic drama film directed by Luis Mandoki and based on Nicholas Sparks's novel of the same name. The film stars Kevin Costner, Robin Wright (under her then-married name Robin Wright Penn), and Paul Newman. It was filmed in Maine, Chicago and Wilmington, North Carolina. The film follows a writer in love with a shipbuilder after finding a letter inside the bottle. The film was released by Warner Bros. Pictures on February 12, 1999. It was panned by the critics, but was a box-office hit, grossing $118 million against a $30 million budget.

## Plot

Theresa Osborne, a former reporter, works as a researcher for the Chicago Tribune. On a trip to Cape Cod, she finds a mysterious, intriguing and typed love letter in a bottle in the sand, addressed to Catherine. She is fascinated by it and shows it to her colleagues. They print it in their newspaper without Theresa's knowledge and receive a multitude of responses.
One of the letters contains an attached letter that was addressed to the same person, on the same letterhead and typed in the same tone. Later, they receive another letter of the same kind from one of the readers that was not addressed to Catherine, but was typed on the same notepad. Eventually, they track down the author with the help of the typewriter and the letterhead used. His name is Garrett Blake, and he lives quietly on the Outer Banks of North Carolina, near his father, Dodge.
Theresa goes to the Outer Banks to research it further, but when she meets him, they are mutually attracted and start becoming better acquainted. She tries to tell him about the original purpose of her visit but fears that she might lose him and postpones it. Along with the literal distance between them — they live hundreds of miles apart — there is another problem: Garrett cannot quite forget Catherine who died, leaving him.
Theresa's career flourishes as the romantic "message in a bottle" tale is told in print without naming names. Garrett makes a trip to Chicago to visit Theresa and her young son. They seem very happy together for a day, but he finds his letters in her nightstand, becomes upset and starts to leave.
When Theresa reveals that there are three letters of the same kind, he becomes intrigued, as he wrote only two of them and comes back to see another letter. The third one, which was not addressed to Catherine, was actually written by Catherine. In that letter, she reveals her love, her knowledge of her impending death, and how she was content with her life with Garrett, however short it might be. He departs with the letter, leaving Theresa in tears.
Garrett moves on with his life and sets things straight with Catherine's family, who had been battling with him for Catherine's artwork. He finishes his personalized boat with the help of Catherine's brother. He names it Catherine in her honor, and sends an invitation to Theresa to visit.
When Theresa goes there, she witnesses Garrett's passionate speech about Catherine. She understands that he still is in love with his late wife, and leaves him, saying that he is welcome to call her when he thinks that he is ready to start a new life.
After that night, Garrett writes a letter to Catherine, puts it in a bottle and goes sailing. A storm breaks out, and Garrett desperately tries to save a family from a sinking boat. He succeeds in saving two of three; however, in the process, he drowns.
Dodge calls Theresa and informs her about Garrett's death. Heartbroken, Theresa goes there to bid farewell. Dodge gives her the letter that Garrett had intended for Catherine, found on his boat. He wrote that he had found someone else; Theresa, who is as dear as Catherine to him. He decides to start a new life with her and asks for Catherine's blessing. Although devastated, Theresa comes back contented, stating that, although this experience left her in grief, it helped her to feel the most important thing in life.

## Cast

* Kevin Costner as Garrett
* Robin Wright Penn as Theresa
* John Savage as Johnny Land
* Illeana Douglas as Lina
* Robbie Coltrane as Charlie
* Jesse James as Jason
* Paul Newman as Dodge
* Bethel Leslie as Marta Land
* Tom Aldredge as Hank Land
* Viveka Davis as Alva
* Raphael Sbarge as Andy
* Richard Hamilton as Chet
* Rosemary Murphy as Helen at the B&B
* Stephen Eckholdt as David

## Production
### Filming

The producers originally planned to film on Tangier Island, Virginia, but the Tangier town council voted against allowing it due to the drinking, swearing and sex in the script.
Warner Bros. tried Martha's Vineyard near Chilmark, Massachusetts, but the Chilmark Conservation Commission turned down a request to build a temporary 3,000-square-foot (280 m$^2$) house on stilts in the dunes near Chilmark Pond.
Beach scenes were filmed at Popham Beach in Phippsburg, Maine. No filming was done at the Outer Banks (the setting of the novel).

### Music

Irish music group Clannad wrote the song, "What Will I Do", for the film. Singer Richard Marx also composed the song "One More Time", sung by Laura Pausini, which played during the closing credits.

## Reception
### Box office

The film grossed $52.9 million in North America, and $66.0 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $118.9 million. In its opening weekend, the film grossed $18.9 million, finishing first at the box office, knocking Payback from the top spot.

### Critical reception

Message in a Bottle received generally negative reviews from critics. On the review aggregator website, Rotten Tomatoes, the film holds a 32% rating, based on 38 reviews, with an average rating of 5.2/10. The site's consensus states: "Handsome-looking but dramatically inert, Message in a Bottle maroons a formidable cast in a trite romance that lacks spark." Metacritic reports a 39 out of 100 rating, based on 23 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable reviews".
Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times gave the film two stars out of four, praising the lead actors, particularly Newman, who "steals every scene he's in", but criticized the contrived ending.
Todd McCarthy of The Hollywood Reporter called it a "dreary, lachrymose and incredibly poky tear-jerker", but conceded that it had a built-in audience among those who put the book on the bestseller list.

## Accolades

| Year | Award | Category | Nominee(s) | Result |
| 1999 | Stinkers Bad Movie Awards | Worst Actor | Kevin Costner | Nominated |
| 2000 | Blockbuster Entertainment Awards | Favorite Actor - Drama/Romance | Kevin Costner | Nominated |
| 2000 | Blockbuster Entertainment Awards | Favorite Actress - Drama/Romance | Robin Wright | Nominated |
| 2000 | Blockbuster Entertainment Awards | Favorite Supporting Actor - Drama/Romance | Paul Newman | Nominated |
| 2000 | Blockbuster Entertainment Awards | Favorite Supporting Actress - Drama/Romance | Illeana Douglas | Nominated |
| 2000 | Golden Raspberry Awards | Worst Actor | Kevin Costner | Nominated |

## Home media

The film was released on VHS, LaserDisc, and DVD on August 3, 1999.