Wind | | Cast : | Matthew Modine, Jennifer Grey | | Director : | Carroll Ballard | | Studio : | Columbia Tristar Hom | | Format : | Color, Closed-captioned, Widescreen | | Released Date : | September 11, 1992 | | DVD Released Date : | March 11, 2003 | | Language : | English (Dubbed), French (Subtitled), English (Subtitled), English (Original Language) | | Audience Rating : | PG-13 (Parental Guidance Suggested) | | | BUY THIS DVD FROM AMAZON | Customer Reviews
| Rating |      | | Date | October 24, 2004 | | Summary | Best sailing movie EVER! | Content
 | I saw this movie twice when it came out in the theaters and was bowled over by the big-screen-surround feeling of real yacht racing. You felt as if you were part of the crew, feeling the wind and wanting to hike out! The VHS and DVD versions are still wonderful to watch. The only drawback to the real sailor is some discontinuity watching the water surface go from mildly choppy to flat calm in some adjoining scenes, but the action and story line make up for the technical difficulties one senses while making this movie. I still cringe knowing the producers bought two old 12-meters just to film the mega-collision scene off Newport during a cup race. Both were destroyed while making the movie. If you're a sailor, don't miss this movie. It's still my all-time favorite. |
| Rating |      | | Date | July 25, 2004 | | Summary | Love of Sailing . . . | Content
 | In reality, in 1983 Australia II skippered by John Bertrand defeated the American boat Liberty skippered by Dennis Cooper, at the end of the 7th match race in the America's Cup. This broke 132 years of victory for America in the America's Cup match race, started in 1851 when the yacht America beat British Fleet in the very first America's Cup race, with the match then named after the first winning boat.
History was made again in 1987 when the Stars & Stripes, again skippered by Dennis Conner, took back the Cup for America against Australian Kookaburra III, skippered by Iain Murray.
The movie Wind provides Hollywood's parallel take on these two historic races. The fictional Will Parker on the boat Radiance loses to Australian Jack Neville on Boomerang, at the 7th race, paralleling the US lost in 1983. The final movie race, in which Will Parker on the US Geronimo, beats out the Australian Platypus, mirrors the 1987 retake of America's Cup.
For sheer racing beauty and competition, this movie is unbeatable. I've watched the sailing parts over and over, and I can't help being amazed that a movie can bring back the same feelings that sailing does.
I race on Lake Michigan for our local Wednesday night races. For anyone who loves sailing, you will love this movie. Also, as the only woman crew member on our sailing team, I particularly identified with Kate Bass, the only woman teammate on the all-male crew -- another bit of Hollywood fiction, but an interesting story line all the same.
I also enjoyed some of the trivia at the very beginning, in which Will Parker is talking to the boat's owner as they look at model boats and discuss the boats made by Old Captain Nat himself. In reality, Captain Nat Hereshoff designed 5 winners of the America's Cup, and they are all mentioned in this movie. Defender(1895), Columbia (won twice- 1899, 1901), Reliance(1903), Resolute(1920), Rainbow(1934). I appreciated the bit of history of the America's Cup, worked into the screenplay. |
| Rating |      | | Date | April 13, 2004 | | Summary | A Great Sailing Movie | Content
 | I missplaced the sailing bug I used to have in my younger days and reclaimed it a bit when I bought 'Wind' used on VHS. I lent it to someone and missed it ever since. The quality of the racing scenes of both the 12 meter boats and the super high adrenelin 14's kept reminding over the years what I have been missing till I bought my own 29' sailboat this year. The movie impressed me so much that I bought it again on DVD and watch the race scenes over and over. A movie to enhance your collection, no doubt at all. |
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