Not gonna lie I watched this film for one reason and one reason only and that's Paul Newman. So, perhaps it is unfair that the main reason I really don't like the film too much (besides its asinine plot) is because Paul Newman is barely in it, which, I suppose, is fair enough because he doesn't appear on the poster, so it's not like a "Rumble in Hong Kong" regarding Jackie Chan sort of situation.

Continuing my plan to watch every Kevin Costner movie in order, I come to 1999's Message In A Bottle.Plot In A Paragraph: Theresa (Robin Wright Penn) finds a romantic letter in a bottle washed ashore and tracks down the author, a widowed shipbuilder (KC) whose wife died tragically early. As the two grow closer, the man struggles to make peace with his past so that he can move on and find happiness.Following a public mauling, KC took 1998 off. For the first time since 1986, KC did not have a movie out in cinemas. Returning with Message In A Bottle was a good career move for KC, it's based on a best selling novel, it has a solid (if slightly predictable) story, great dialogue, it is beautifully shot and has good performances. OK it's a chick flick, but it's one of the better ones.But for me, KC is not at his best, I know he is meant to be moody and melancholy, but for me he mostly comes off as subdued. In contrast Robin Wright Penn gives my favourite performance of her career and Paul Newman simply owns every scene he is in, and I believe he should have been nominated for an Oscar. I remember one review I can't recall who, maybe Barry Norman, saying "Newman not only steals every scene he's in, but he puts it in the bank and gets interest on it." It made me laugh. I remember buying the book before seeing the movie, and there were some considerable differences, including the amount of notes sent and the ending.

(Major Spoilers) At over the 2-hour mark this bloated drama directed by Luis Mandoki features an over-the-top monologue from Robin Wright narrating to a string orchestra fading to credit in blaring fashion. "Message in a Bottle" is poorly edited and taken from a novel by Nicholas Sparks. It stars Kevin Costner in his usual light-talking and pause-filled acting and Wright doing a Satisfactory but perfunctory job. Paul Newman thankfully shows up in about 25 min of runtime to breath reality and some spots of fun into this clunky, overlong, paperweight. The director employs intercut cheese-fest MTV music shorts that are so common today, and signal a lack of thought in cinema. Moreover, dialog is weighty and there's too much droning on of the past. By the end, Costners character's demise is an epilogue of the actual story, and an eye-roller. 5/10 - not recommended

Message in the Bottle (1999): Dir: Luis Mandoki / Cast: Kevin Costner, Robin Wright, Paul Newman, Illeana Douglas, John Savage: One of the worst excuses for a romance ever concocted. The title would be most fitting for a beer commercial and indeed viewers may need to resort to a drink after sitting through this sappy pathetic trash. Kevin Costner sends letters addressed to his late wife sailing in bottles. Robin Wright discovers one washed ashore and attempts contact. Useless subplot involves a rivalry with his in-laws because he refuses to give over his late wife's paintings. It is predictable and dull with a cheap tearjerker ending. Dreadful directing by Luis Mandoki who previously made When a Man Loves a Woman. If a man truly did love a woman then he would avoid subjecting her to this shipwreck piece of crap. Horrid performance by Costner as a guy who lives next door to his father and builds boats. Wright fares even worse but what is most puzzling is her inability to explain her business to him. Would he really be that upset to hear how his messages inspired her? Paul Newman plays Costner's bickering father in a role way too conventional. Illeana Douglas is also featured hopefully to her regret. The family of Costner's late wife are too over the top and only exist to bicker and yell over trivial tripe. Grief ridden crap that should be flushed down the toilet. Score: 0 / 10