In the Heart of the Sea Reviews

Back in 2013, Ron Howard and Chris Hemsworth made together 'Rush' which was a box-office flop but, at least, it was very well received and, apparently, this end-result was good enough for them so they came up afterwards with another true tale but the flop was even bigger this time, I'm afraid. To be honest, right from the start, the whole thing felt slightly misguided. Indeed, basically, in fact, it was not exactly about 'Moby Dick', it was apparently an adaptation of a book  about how Herman Melville was inspired by a true story to write his own literary classic. I mean, right from there, how would you approach something so convoluted? Well, apparently, if you are Ron Howard, a decent but never really groundbreaking director, in the most conventional way possible so, of course, it failed miserably. I mean, in fact, it wasn't a bad movie at all, the production value was quite impressive,  the action scenes were pretty badass and I was entertained thoughout the whole thing but I wasn't exactly inspired of gobsmacked by what was displayed on the screen at any moment and, eventually, I think a straight adaptation of 'Moby Dick' would have worked better. Anyway, it still think it was another decent effort from this director and, in spite of its flaws, I think it is worth a look, especially if you are interested in Ron Howard's work.

Thoughts Before I Watched This:
1. I been meaning to watch this for some time.
2. The story of Moby Dick was always fun and to see it's inspiration is great.
3. Ron Howard is usually quite an enjoyable director.
4. The cast itself is superb.
5. Charles Leavitt wrote Seventh Son and Blood Diamond which I found both to be enjoyable.
6. More so Blood Diamond of course.
7. Rick Jaffa and Amanda Silver are known for the newest Planet of the Apes movies as well as Jurassic World.
8. With all this in mind I'm even more excited to finally watch this.

Thoughts While I Watched This:
1. I didn't realize the author of Moby Dick would be portrayed here.
2. Of course you wouldn't want to talk about such an experience.
3. The sets are pretty and the acting is good so far.
4. The tension is predestined.
5. Oh just proving why he should be the captain.
6. I like that it isn't just white guys everywhere.
7. Well that seems like a good way to get rid of it.
8. You sir are an imbecile is what I would tell him.
9. The nerve of some people.
10. Aww dolphins!
11. Interesting history lesson here with how they get the oil.
12. Also eww!
13. That definitely gives that hint of Moby Dick without the revenge part.
14. Holy crap that is a lot of whales!
15. Some animals learn to take action.
16. Those are some of the most dangerous kinds.
17. I don't see how anyone could survive like this.
18. Maybe he just has an itch he is trying to scratch lol.
19. It's funny how tragic events can change peoples attitudes with each other.
20. Well it seems likely that that isn't a good sign.
21. They did that in such a tasteful yet tragic way.
22. That seemed a bit selfish.
23. Wow the actors really worked hard to make this feel realistic.
24. Good sport.
25. The ending is a bit on the sappy side.

Thoughts After I Watched This:
1. It's always amazing when an actor is so committed to their role they physically change dramatically for it.
2. Ron Howard proves that he has still got it.
3. Sometimes in the smaller boats the background looked a bit odd.
4. That was one cruel whale.
5. I was hoping it to be a bit better, but it's still fairly good.
6. I'm surprised that it flopped in the box office though considering the director and stars.

Fiction inspired by fiction inspired by non-fiction. While the film is certainly gorgeous in its production design and full of genuine action scenes involving a huge whale it also doesn't boast any strong themes or create any true emotion. It's basically a soft retelling of a hard story.

There also didn't seem to be a climax, which is kind of crucial to a story. And how did Chase come back from being starved and burnt to looking like he did at the beginning after being rescued for a few days?

Still, it's difficult to call this a failure, as Ron Howard has put together an impressive production and this is a good seafaring adventure

NO FISHERMAN'S LUCK

Seafaring were interesting to follow. To see how the crew worked the whaler and how they hunted whales and collected the whale oil.
I like these kinds of historical movies. True stories. Myths. Always interesting to see what happened and what the world was before us and how it has evolved since then.
The score was good and the whale scenes were nicely shot.
Need to read Herman Melville's Moby Dick when i get the chance.