GotoSailing.com Presents: The Top 10 Best Sailing Movies of All Times

A sailor is a sailor everywhere and at all times. Even if she has to live on land, the sea is always on her mind. We know it from ourselves that the best remedy for a sailor away from the sea is to read about the sea, watch sea movies and dream about sailing…

GotoSailing.com Presents: The Top 10 Best Sailing Movies of All Times

Until we're back on the waves, these are among the few things that can comfort us. As Gotosailing.com, we present you with a list of the best sea movies of all times. These are all movies that we have seen and loved, and if there are ones in this list that you haven’t seen yet, we do recommend you see them in no time: You’ll feel aqua…

10. The Perfect Storm (2000)

“The storm of the century,” formed by three storms coming together, took place on October 1991. The movie tells the story of fishing boat Andrea Gail which is caught in this very intense storm. Starred by George Clooney and set in the North Atlantic, The Perfect Storm is impressive with the wave effects and storm scenes.

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9. Wind (1992)

Inspired by real events that took place in the America's Cup Races of 1983 and 1987, this film tells about a sailor who lost the cup to the Australians. He now tries to regain the cup and reunite with his lover he lost during the struggle. The film also reveals the tremendous technological advancement America's Cup has made. Featuring Matthew Modine and Jennifer Grey, Wind has the most impressive sailing race scenes in the history of cinema.

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8. Deep Water (2006)

This British documentary is about the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race made for the first time in 1968, the first non-stop circumnavigation race in the world. Telling the story of one of the racers, Donald Crowhurst, Deep Water is an important movie not only for sea-lovers but also for those who enjoy documentaries. Winning many awards and receiving positive comments at the time it was screened, this is one of the best films about those nine months of loneliness and struggle.

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7. All Is Lost (2013)

A striking struggle to survive on the ocean, directed by J.C. Chandlor and starred by Robert Redford. Sailing on the Indian Ocean, a man loses consciousness when his boat hits a ship container. When he comes round he finds himself right in the middle of a strong storm, having lost his navigation and communication equipment. Although he is confident that he will stay alive with his seaman’s experience and sagacity, things will prove much more difficult than he imagines. We have no clue of this sailor’s past, we don’t even know his name, but the film is so engrossing and we identify so closely with this sailor that we feel like cursing each and every ship who just pass by without noticing him.

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6. Kon-Tiki (2012)

Long before its film, Kon-Tiki has been a cult book –published in 1948- for all sailors. In one of the most inspiring stories in naval history, in 1947, Norwegian explorer Thor Heyerdahl and his friends crossed the Pacific on a simple raft made with the techniques used in antiquity. It all started with anthropologist Thor Heyerdahl’s controversial theory, suggesting that the people of Polynesian Islands had settled there by sailing to these islands from South America. Heyerdahl’s theory was met with criticism as his colleagues found such a journey impossible. So he decided to try sailing from South America to Polynesia under exactly the same conditions as people had back then. Heyerdahl goes to Peru with his friends, where they build a raft and set sail to 8,000-kilometers of adventure. Kon-Tiki’s 101-day-long crossing is full of exciting details.

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5. Maidentrip (2013)

This documentary tells the story of Laura Dekker, who sailed for 518 days and completed a world tour on January 2012, becoming the youngest sailor to make a solo circumnavigation. This is the story of a different kind of struggle. The Dutch authorities were against Dekker’s journey because of her age, but she succeeded in setting sail, on August 2010, winning her legal battle. More than Dekker’s journey around the world, the film focuses on Dekker’s struggle to set sail and to become an individual.

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4. Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003)

Directed by Peter Weir and starred by Russel Crowe, the film won the Academy Awards for best cinematography and best sound editing. On the days that Europe trembled with the fear of Napoleon, Jack Aubrey (Russell Crowe), the captain of an English warship, is charged with the duty of sinking a French ship much faster and stronger than his own. Captain Aubrey adamantly follows the French ship in the Pacific Ocean in a challenging journey both for himself and his crew.

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3. Captain Phillips (2013)

Here’s a thriller on a sailor’s greatest fear: Pirates! Based on a true story, Paul Greengrass’s Captain Phillips comes to the fore with Tom Hanks’ outstanding performance. The movie focuses on the psychological tension between the pirates’ leader and Captain Richard Phillips, who becomes a hostage to save his crew.

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2. Between Home (2012)

The extraordinary story of 25-year-old adventurer Nick Jaffe, a man with no experience in sailing, planning to sail from Berlin to Sydney, Australia. In his 3 years of struggle against loneliness and the sea, you’ll enjoy watching how fresh-water adventurer Jaffe becomes an experienced mariner.

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1. Le Grand Bleu / The Big Blue (1988)

Inspired by the true story Jacques Mayol, the first-ever apnea diver to go deeper than 100 meters, we wouldn’t be wrong to say this film is director Luc Besson’s masterpiece – well, it certainly is so for a sea-lover’s heart. Touching our soul with Eric Serra’s outstanding soundtrack, Le Grand Bleu tells about two friends who grew up together, their passion for diving, and the dangerous rivalry between the two that takes them to incredible depths.

If you’ve seen the film in the 90’s, we would suggest you see it again these days. That’s what we did, and we relived our youth, those days that we first fell in love with the sea.

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BONUS

The Old Man and the Sea (1958)

Adapted from Ernest Hemingway’s 1952 novel The Old Man and the Sea, this great movie’s leading man Spencer Tracy was nominated for the Academy Awards, and its soundtrack won the best original score Academy Award. The old man waits on his boat for days to catch a fish. Finally, such a big fish hits his road that he just can’t pull it up with his hands. When all his efforts bring no result, he ties the fish to his boat and sails back to the shore. But that’s not the end, he now has to fight against the sharks who are after the big fish…

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