In The Heart of the Sea (12A.)
Directed by Ron Howard.
Starring Chris Hemsworth, Benjamin Walker, Cillian Murphy, Frank Dillane, Tom Holland, Brendan Gleeson and Ben Whishaw. In cinemas on Boxing Day. 122 mins
In the Heart of the Sea is a telling of the true story – the sinking of the whaling ship The Essex in 1820 - that inspired Moby Dick. The film opens with Melville (Whishaw) arriving at the home of the last remaining survivor (gleeson) and bribing him to reveal the full truth of the story.
We know that a great white whale is likely to pop up in this narrative but as the film opens it looks more like a rerun of Mutiny On The Bounty. Owen Chase (Hemsworth) is an experienced but lowly born sea man who had been promised the captaincy on his next voyage but finds himself forced to be first mate to the inexperienced Captain Pollard (Walker) a member of the family that runs the company.
Just as Chase and the crew quickly come to mistrust and resent his poor leadership, the viewer will quickly realise that this film isn't up to the task of conveying the story properly. It is awash with second rate CGI and poorly executed action sequences. I think your heart sinks early on when Hemsworth is having his off-to-sea talk with his pregnant wife against a clearly artificial backdrop. After that, there is barely a convincing moment in the film. Even the big action sequences are muddled through in a blur of quick edits and incoherent dialogue. How much of this is down to budgetary limitation is unclear but it is all very disappointing.
It is also too bluntly a star vehicle for Hemsworth. Hemsworth makes a great Thor or James Hunt but only seems to be effective playing an overblown, parody of hero.
Directed by Ron Howard.
Starring Chris Hemsworth, Benjamin Walker, Cillian Murphy, Frank Dillane, Tom Holland, Brendan Gleeson and Ben Whishaw. In cinemas on Boxing Day. 122 mins
In the Heart of the Sea is a telling of the true story – the sinking of the whaling ship The Essex in 1820 - that inspired Moby Dick. The film opens with Melville (Whishaw) arriving at the home of the last remaining survivor (gleeson) and bribing him to reveal the full truth of the story.
We know that a great white whale is likely to pop up in this narrative but as the film opens it looks more like a rerun of Mutiny On The Bounty. Owen Chase (Hemsworth) is an experienced but lowly born sea man who had been promised the captaincy on his next voyage but finds himself forced to be first mate to the inexperienced Captain Pollard (Walker) a member of the family that runs the company.
Just as Chase and the crew quickly come to mistrust and resent his poor leadership, the viewer will quickly realise that this film isn't up to the task of conveying the story properly. It is awash with second rate CGI and poorly executed action sequences. I think your heart sinks early on when Hemsworth is having his off-to-sea talk with his pregnant wife against a clearly artificial backdrop. After that, there is barely a convincing moment in the film. Even the big action sequences are muddled through in a blur of quick edits and incoherent dialogue. How much of this is down to budgetary limitation is unclear but it is all very disappointing.
It is also too bluntly a star vehicle for Hemsworth. Hemsworth makes a great Thor or James Hunt but only seems to be effective playing an overblown, parody of hero.
