In the Heart of the Sea Reviews

Ron Howard is a good director. What separates him from being great is that he is entirely dependent on his script. He is a good director because when given any material, he plays to its strengths and lets the narrative and characters do the talking. He is not flashy and lets the film breathe, rather he is a confident, knowledgeable, and smart filmmaker able to make the most of any material he is given. Unfortunately, this also means that bad material he is given will be watchable, but still bad (The Da Vinci Code). Great material lives up to its potential and Howard's assured hand gives the film the extra push to become a top-notch film (Apollo 13). In the Heart of the Sea is in the middle of these two. A solid film that would have been awful under a lesser director, but could have been special with a great director, the film is a middle-of-the-road film with pros and cons. In the pros column, we have the visuals. Painstakingly gorgeous, it is a shame that this film bombed because it deserved recognition for the cinematography. On land, it beautifully captures the whaling towns and the New England feeling of these small sea towns. In town, the browns and grays are gorgeous. Gratuitous shots of the ocean from Owen Chase's (Chris Hemsworth) home with the green town on the side. With Anthony Dod Mantle's camera gently floating up and catching this beauty of the small seaside town in 1820s Nantucket, it feels practically idyllic. On the open ocean, the sunset lends beautiful oranges and yellows to adorn the film that leads to lush greens and blues. With long shot after long shot of the sun's orange casting down on the green and blue of the open ocean, In the Heart of the Sea is a painfully beautiful film. The cinematography gives this film impeccable visuals that feel like a painting one could find of ships in the 1800s. A true visual accomplishment, In the Heart of the Sea is a film that demands to be seen in order for every living person to be awed by the sheer beauty of the proceedings. Unfortunately, this perfect cinematography is not matched by the visual effects. Compared to another film based around oil and disasters, Deepwater Horizon, the visual effects in this film are pretty bad at times. The whale looks incredible and, again, shots on the open ocean look great. The fire looks terrific too. Unfortunately, shots during the storm and while whaling are really ruined by how fake it all looks. It is similar to car being driven in a film from the 1940s or 1950s. It looks like it was filmed on a set, which is a shame. Similarly, a few action set pieces also look entirely staged, similar to the effects in a 1970s disaster movie. These moments do no just disrupt the suspension of disbelief on the part of the audience, but just look awful compared to the gritty realism of the rest of the film. Another major negative for this film is the acting. In the lead role, Chris Hemsworth plays Thor. Pretending to have a New England accent in one scene where he says apaht instead of apart, he is fine and entirely palatable. But, either have an accent throughout the whole thing or just forget about trying. Sean Connery made a whole career on his looks, being cool, and playing every character as a Scotsman. Hemsworth can do the same, but he has to stop pretending. Alongside him, Benjamin Walker is pretty bad Captain Pollard, but nobody is as egregiously bad as Tom Holland. Every line he speaks honestly hurts. From the very beginning, Holland never utters a line with any conviction. He knows he is acting and we know he is acting. Shame the production team made the actors suffer so much (500-600 calories a day) to capture authenticity for such bad performances. Cannot say it was worth it on their parts. The only actors trying are Ben Whishaw and Brendan Gleeson, but as Herman Melville and old Thomas Nickerson, all they do is talk about the story and are not given much to do throughout. Of those who suffer, Cillian Murphy is alright, but even he turns in a lackluster performance compared to his body of work. With bad visual effects and bad acting, In the Heart of the Sea is a film that simply lacks the depth needed to be a good film. Its story and characters are fine, but never as rich as the cinematography and painting-esque shots adorning the film. That said, as with all Ron Howard films, it is entirely watchable, riveting, and a film that entertains throughout despite its seemingly crusty and aged story.