Goldie Hawn and Kurt Russell star in Overboard, a quirky romantic-comedy that keeps the laughs coming from start to finish. Overboard is directed by Garry Marshall, who also directed beloved classics such as Pretty Woman, The Princess Diaries, Beaches, and Valentine's Day. The film was released in 1987 and was set in Elk Cove, Oregon.
Overboard is a story of revenge gone wrong. Dean Proffitt (Kurt Russell) is a widower with four sons and little money. He has recently moved to Elk Cove, a small coastal town in Oregon, where he works as a carpenter. Meanwhile, Joanna Stayton (Goldie Hawn) is a rich heiress who spends her days sunbathing on her luxury yacht. Joanna hires Dean to remodel her closet and he learns the hard way that Joanna is not a very nice person. When Dean presents Joanna with the final project, she is infuriated that the closet was made with the wrong type of wood and refuses to pay Dean for his three days of work. When Dean demands to be paid for his service, Joanna pushes him off the yacht and throws all of his tools into the ocean. Later that night, Joanna realizes that she left her wedding ring out on the deck and orders her husband, Grant, to go retrieve it. When he ignores her, she decides to go get it herself, however, in a karmic moment, Joanna trips and falls overboard into the ocean. She yells in vein for her husband and servants and watches as her yacht sails away into the night. The next morning Joanna is discovered by a garbage scow and is taken to a nearby hospital where it is discovered that she is suffering from amnesia. Grant arrives to claim her as his wife but after witnessing Joanna throwing an angry fit, decides to abandon her. Meanwhile, Dean sees Joanna's picture on the news and develops a plan to get her back for cheating him out of his money. Dean arrives at the hospital and claims to be her husband. He tells her that her name is Annie Proffitt and takes her to his rundown home. "Annie" (Joanna) is disgusted by his home and is shocked to discover that she has four sons. As Dean makes her his own personal live-in slave, "Annie" tries to understand how she ever fit into this life. As "Annie" tries to regain her memory, Dean and his sons begin to like having a wife and mother figure around again and this situation leads to a delightfully entertaining journey of self-discovery and love.
Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn are brilliant and their chemistry is undeniable. Hawn does an excellent job at convincing the audience that she is a spoiled rotten bitch; yet at the same time is likable enough to garner sympathy for the predicament she is in. Meanwhile, Russell plays up his boyish charms and gets the audiences' support and understanding despite being a little irresponsible and deceitful. Russell and Hawn develop the relationship of Dean and Annie/Joanna beautifully and make the transgression realistic and believable.
The music for the movie was done by Alan Silvestri and greatly adds to the emotions of the movie. For the most part, the music is very fast and comic sounding relying on rapid high pitch interchanging of stringed instruments mingled with deeper undertones which offers a very country, down-home, humble type of feel. The music is very different towards the end of the film as Annie/Joanna is discovering things about herself that she does not necessarily like—the music becomes much more forlorn and gives a sense of longing. Silvestri does a wonderful job of complementing the emotions of the sense with the tonalities of the score.
Overall, Overboard is a charming comedy with a great cast and unique storyline. It is not the typical 80's movie with all the teenage melodrama, but it is still a wonderful product of the feel-good cinematic era. I would highly recommend this movie, as it is great for all ages. This movie is timeless and will keep the viewer laughing until the very end.
Overboard is a story of revenge gone wrong. Dean Proffitt (Kurt Russell) is a widower with four sons and little money. He has recently moved to Elk Cove, a small coastal town in Oregon, where he works as a carpenter. Meanwhile, Joanna Stayton (Goldie Hawn) is a rich heiress who spends her days sunbathing on her luxury yacht. Joanna hires Dean to remodel her closet and he learns the hard way that Joanna is not a very nice person. When Dean presents Joanna with the final project, she is infuriated that the closet was made with the wrong type of wood and refuses to pay Dean for his three days of work. When Dean demands to be paid for his service, Joanna pushes him off the yacht and throws all of his tools into the ocean. Later that night, Joanna realizes that she left her wedding ring out on the deck and orders her husband, Grant, to go retrieve it. When he ignores her, she decides to go get it herself, however, in a karmic moment, Joanna trips and falls overboard into the ocean. She yells in vein for her husband and servants and watches as her yacht sails away into the night. The next morning Joanna is discovered by a garbage scow and is taken to a nearby hospital where it is discovered that she is suffering from amnesia. Grant arrives to claim her as his wife but after witnessing Joanna throwing an angry fit, decides to abandon her. Meanwhile, Dean sees Joanna's picture on the news and develops a plan to get her back for cheating him out of his money. Dean arrives at the hospital and claims to be her husband. He tells her that her name is Annie Proffitt and takes her to his rundown home. "Annie" (Joanna) is disgusted by his home and is shocked to discover that she has four sons. As Dean makes her his own personal live-in slave, "Annie" tries to understand how she ever fit into this life. As "Annie" tries to regain her memory, Dean and his sons begin to like having a wife and mother figure around again and this situation leads to a delightfully entertaining journey of self-discovery and love.
Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn are brilliant and their chemistry is undeniable. Hawn does an excellent job at convincing the audience that she is a spoiled rotten bitch; yet at the same time is likable enough to garner sympathy for the predicament she is in. Meanwhile, Russell plays up his boyish charms and gets the audiences' support and understanding despite being a little irresponsible and deceitful. Russell and Hawn develop the relationship of Dean and Annie/Joanna beautifully and make the transgression realistic and believable.
The music for the movie was done by Alan Silvestri and greatly adds to the emotions of the movie. For the most part, the music is very fast and comic sounding relying on rapid high pitch interchanging of stringed instruments mingled with deeper undertones which offers a very country, down-home, humble type of feel. The music is very different towards the end of the film as Annie/Joanna is discovering things about herself that she does not necessarily like—the music becomes much more forlorn and gives a sense of longing. Silvestri does a wonderful job of complementing the emotions of the sense with the tonalities of the score.
Overall, Overboard is a charming comedy with a great cast and unique storyline. It is not the typical 80's movie with all the teenage melodrama, but it is still a wonderful product of the feel-good cinematic era. I would highly recommend this movie, as it is great for all ages. This movie is timeless and will keep the viewer laughing until the very end.