Return to Sender

A woman finds a romantic letter in a bottle washed ashore and tracks down the author, a widowed shipbuilder whose wife died tragically early. As a deep and mutual attraction blossoms, the man struggles to make peace with his past so that he can move on and find happiness.

I rented the sappy tearjerker, Message in a Bottle, a few weeks ago. For starters, I think Kevin Costner is a puss (IMHO) so that made for Strike One. I realize there are legions of Costner fans walking the earth, but I’m not one of them. Secondly, the characters didn’t even bother attempting realism by speaking with a southern accent. This dreadful tale is supposedly set in Wilmington, NC, and having lived in North Carolina for several years, I can attest to the fact that true Tarheels do indeed talk with a pronounced drawl. And that brings me to Strike Three—it’s supposed location. As I watched the movie, I looked in vain for any familiar beach shots that vaguely resembled the Outer Banks. HA! For whatever reason, the powers that be chose deception over truth by saying this drivel took place on my special coast when in actuality, it was Maine’s seashore used for the setting. Guess they figured no one would notice. At any rate, I almost had to restrain myself from applauding at the end when Kevin’s character met his untimely demise. *said in loud umpirish voice,* “Yer out!”