The greatest movie ever!

One of my all time favorites.

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

The plot isn't so bad, but the pace of storytelling is too slow which makes people bored. Certain moments are so obvious and unnecessary for the main plot. I would've fast-forwarded those moments if it was an online streaming. The ending looks like implying a sequel, not sure if this movie will get one

This is a slightly embellished story of the whaling ship Essex which was sunk by a Sperm Whale in 1820. This story was the inspiration for Melville's "Moby Dick." In the film Melville (Ben Whishaw) interviews the adult Thomas Nickerson (Brendan Gleeson) who spends his time in a bottle and is reluctant to tell his tale of woe. However his fourth wife (Michelle Fairley) convinces him because of their pecuniary predicament. Thomas was a 14 year old "Greenhorn" (Tom Holland) at the time and tells the story as a conflict between the privileged captain George Pollard (Benjamin Walker) and a disgruntle first mate Owen Chase (Chris Hemsworth) who was promised his own ship. As Pollard remarks, "Some are born to the job, some born into it." Thomas experiences his first "Nantucket sleigh ride" and gets to do all the dirty jobs.If you know the story they encounter a "demon" whale who hunts and haunts them.The story was well done and well acted if slightly inaccurate. Both Chase and Nickerson wrote accounts of the story and Melville used Chase's account for his inspiration. The interview appears to be fiction. There is a late emotional scene involving the Captain's cousin that wasn't quite accurate, but the results were the same.Good sea drama and half decent action flick.

Inspired by true events, Ron Howard's "In the Heart of the Sea" is a literate, often exciting tale that is at once historical and informative, exciting and action filled, grueling and tragic. Charles Leavitt's well-written screenplay was based on a book by Nathaniel Philbrick, In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex, which purports to show the events that inspired Herman Melville to write Moby Dick. In the middle of the 19th century, the young Melville travels to Nantucket and seeks out the last survivor of the whaling ship Essex, which disappeared thirty years earlier with much controversy. After some persuasion and with enough cash, Melville, played by Ben Wishaw, convinces Brendan Gleeson as Tom Nickerson to relate the shocking story, which Nickerson has not even shared with his wife, played by Michelle Fairley. The film's acting honors go to the seasoned trio featured in the Melville-Nickerson scenes, which flash back to the story of the Essex as Gleeson relates the events.The actual tale of the Essex begins with Owen Chase, a strapping young seaman, who aspires to be captain of a whaler and has been promised a captaincy by the local shipowners. However, he is forced to accept first-mate status under an inexperienced captain, who has family connections. Chris Hemsworth certainly looks the part of Chase, a role that would have suited the young Sterling Hayden. Hemsworth's heroic looks, which at times resemble the youthful Nick Nolte, are perhaps too California-surfer to be convincing as a rugged seafarer. However, while he does have physical presence, a better actor could have deepened the characterization. The same comments apply to Benjamin Walker, who plays Chase's nemesis, Captain George Pollard, an untested captain who steers his ship and men carelessly into peril. Meanwhile, Cillian Murphy as Matthew Joy and Tom Holland as the young version of Nickerson provide able support among Pollard's crew.Set to a beautiful score by Roque Baños, the film features exciting whale-hunting scenes, a fierce storm at sea, and a harrowing tale of survival. However, "In the Heart of the Sea" illustrates the importance of a strong lead even in a film rich with special effects and action at sea. Without Russell Crowe, "Master and Commander" would not have succeeded as it did; with actors of Crowe's caliber in the roles of Chase and Pollard, the film could have been a titanic clash of wills set against the forces of nature in the guise of a monstrous whale. However, even with its flaws, "In the Heart of the Sea" is fine entertainment, despite its failure to attain the heights to which director Howard aspired.

In scene one, Herman Melville meets a whaler who tells a tale worthy of the ages. His ship was smashed in by a 100 foot white sperm whale, and the survivors were adrift at sea for weeks until they had no food left ....except each other.This medium budget sea epic from Ron Howard is not a bad movie, but it isn't any good either. In the first hour, it succeeds in building some momentum as we set out to sea with Chris Hemsworth and we sail right into a storm. To Howard's credit, he has a very distinctive way of shooting these scenes that is both immersive and allows the CGI to blend in. The picture looks as if we are seeing it through a spy glass, with drops of spray in the lens creating a surreal like soft focus. Some of this technique was visible in his previous film Rush but was less effective and resulted in a blurry picture.Hemsworth succeeds in commanding the screen with his bravado and virtuousness for a good while. Unlike in Rush, his character comes from a place of melancholy rather than ego. He is the smartest sailor on a ship that is under the command of a rookie and inexperienced captain, appointed at the request of the Whaling company. As is typical of Hollywood movies, the individuals representing commerce and industry are one dimensional and vilified. This development is as annoying as it is unnecessary.The movie has dozens of computer generated whales, which are competently rendered but animated to swim at hyper realistic, unconvincing speeds. The star of the sea is the great white whale who wreaks havoc on our small band of sailors. From this point on the movie sinks with the ship.The last act is dreary, emotional detached, and strangely paced. Potetially compelling scenes feel as if they were cut short in order to make a two hour running length. Hemsworth and his mates drift along in their whaleboats while their beards grow between the cuts, and the giant whale pops up a few more times to attack. One problem is that this Moby Dick doesn't have enough sense of menace; he never shows his teeth (both literally and figuratively). Melville's Moby Dick was a beast, this whale is just an animal.As a tale of survival, In the Heart of the Sea feels lacking because it feels rushed. The material may have been better suited to a three part mini-series, a format that would give the characters more room to breath. In a good survival tale, the characters come away finding their humanity or something meaningful, none of that is visible here. Instead, the punchline of the film is that this story was the inspiration for one of the greatest pieces of American prose. That in itself does carry some meaning, but not enough to make the film worth watching.

This movie is both educational and well done. It made me look into the real story that inspired Melville's Moby Dick. It has good production value and tells a compelling story that keeps you watching. It may take some liberties with the historical facts, but is for the most part true to what is known of the real story. The characters are not shallow, but live through plausible emotions. Ron Howard directs his actors, and the whole production with his usual highly competent skills; he may not be a genius of the 7th art, but he will be remembered as an important director of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Overall, I am glad to have seen it and followed up on reading about the historical accounts behind the movie. I was very pleasantly surprised.