Some stories require surrealism and gruesome violence not to work as stories, but to work as movies. The story of the Essex is fascinating. The men were searching for whale oil, and were attacked by a large white whale that destroyed the ship and left them stranded for 97 days causing them to do everything they could to survive. That’s a story that’s just calling for an epic, surreal, and blisteringly intense film experience. That’s not what In the Heart of the Sea is though. The film only reveals as much as the summary above, and that’s unfortunate. In the Heart of the Sea is a mediocre, but powerful film that could have been a powerful and great film. It’s well directed, and at times you glimpse the intense nature of the way these men worked and what they went through. The “PG-13” rating, and two hour run time has crippled the storytelling. Ron Howard and Chris Hemsworth, the film’s saving graces, can’t do much to save what’s here. This is an ambitious screenplay, but it falls short. What’s there is well made, what’s not is what ruins it. Every time the film gets close to doing something that is hard-hitting, it cuts away to Brendan Gleeson, the only survivor, narrating the events of the story instead of allowing the story to play out. The men of the Essex committed terrible deeds to survive, but it’s never shown to the audience: it’s always told to us. The visual storytelling itself, however, isn’t all that bad. Ron Howard is still an earnest and interesting director. He knows how to frame an epic shot, and he seems to be employing the techniques that Spielberg used in the making of Jaws. In the Heart of the Sea seems to be taking a lot from that masterpiece with the white whale getting it’s fair share of POV and close shots. It also has a very dynamic camera style with the camera cutting quickly around the boat. I don’t know if that was the best choice to get a full idea of the space, but you can certainly tell he was trying. Hemsworth, who plays the film’s protagonist, is a commanding presence, but too much of an archetype to work without the lengthy runtime that the film needs. He’s got the deep voice and imposing figure to work as a protagonist, but we don’t get enough of him acting. He’s simply narrated. The other characters don’t work at all because they have absolutely nothing to do. There is an attempt at suspense between Hemsworth and another captain, but that’s narrated to us as well. Ben Whishaw and Brendan Gleeson are given things to do, but their story is part of the problem because they provide the narration. This is a great looking film, and the story it tells is undeniably powerful but that’s all it is – a story. It’s still a competent film, and not a total waste of time, but it offers nothing in the way of exciting or cathartic. It’s just washed out. I give In the Heart of the Sea a 5.5 out of 10.
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December 2017
CategoriesAuthorHello welcome to FilmAnalyst. My name is Stephen Tronicek, and I really like movies. This is a way to get my opinions out to people. Thank you for visiting. |