*In the Heart of the Sea (film)

*In the Heart of the Sea (film)
Name	In the Heart of the Sea
Director	Ron Howard
Producer	Brian Grazer, Ron Howard, Will Ward, Joe Roth, Paula Weinstein
Screenplay	Charles Leavitt
Based on	In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex, Nathaniel Philbrick
Starring	Chris Hemsworth, Benjamin Walker, Cillian Murphy, Tom Holland, Brendan Gleeson, Ben Whishaw
Music	Roque Baños
Cinematography	Anthony Dod Mantle
Editing	Daniel P. Hanley, Mike Hill
Studio	Warner Bros. Pictures, Village Roadshow Pictures, Imagine Entertainment, Roth Films, COTT Productions, Enelmar Productions A.I.E.
Distributor	Warner Bros. Pictures
Released	2015, 11, 26, BFI IMAX, 2015, 12, 11, United States
Runtime	122 minutes
Country	United States, Spain, Australia, United Kingdom
Language	English
Budget	$100 million
Gross	$93.9 million

*In the Heart of the Sea (film) is a 2015 historical adventure drama film directed by Ron Howard and written by Charles Leavitt. The film is an adaptation of Nathaniel Philbrick's 2000 non-fiction book In the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex, which chronicles the 1820 sinking of the whaleship ''Essex'' by a sperm whale in the South Pacific Ocean. Framed as a recounting by an aged survivor to author Herman Melville, the narrative explores the crew's subsequent struggle for survival and the harrowing events that inspired Melville's seminal novel, Moby-Dick.

Plot

In 1850, a young Herman Melville travels to Nantucket to interview the last surviving crewman of the ''Essex'', Thomas Nickerson, who is reluctant to share his story. Under pressure from his wife, Nickerson recounts the 1820 voyage from Nantucket, where first mate Owen Chase clashes with the inexperienced captain, George Pollard Jr.. After a long, unsuccessful hunt in the South Pacific, the crew encounters a massive, aggressive sperm whale that deliberately rams and sinks their ship. The survivors, including Chase, Pollard, second mate Matthew Joy, and cabin boy Thomas Nickerson, are set adrift in three whaleboats, facing starvation, dehydration, and despair as they resort to extreme measures to stay alive during their 90-day ordeal.

Cast

* Chris Hemsworth as Owen Chase, the skilled and ambitious first mate of the Essex. * Benjamin Walker as Captain George Pollard Jr., the young and privileged captain. * Cillian Murphy as Matthew Joy, the steadfast second mate. * Tom Holland as young Thomas Nickerson, the 14-year-old cabin boy. * Brendan Gleeson as old Thomas Nickerson, the haunted survivor recounting the tale. * Ben Whishaw as Herman Melville, the author seeking the true story. * Michelle Fairley as Mrs. Nickerson, the wife of the older Thomas. * Frank Dillane as Henry Coffin, a crew member. * Joseph Mawle as Benjamin Lawrence, the boatsteerer. * Edward Ashley as Barzillai Ray, a crew member. * Sam Keeley as William Bond, a crew member. * Osy Ikhile as Richard Peterson, a crew member. * Gary Beadle as William Wright, a crew member.

Production

Development for the film began in the late 1990s, with Imagine Entertainment acquiring the rights to Nathaniel Philbrick's book prior to its publication. Ron Howard was attached to direct, with a screenplay initially written by William Broyles Jr. and later rewritten by Charles Leavitt. Principal photography commenced in September 2013 at Warner Bros. Studios, Leavesden in the United Kingdom, with extensive location shooting in La Gomera and Lanzarote in the Canary Islands to double for Nantucket and the Pacific. The production utilized a full-scale replica of the ''Essex'' and employed both practical effects and ILM's visual effects to create the whale and storm sequences.

Release

The film had its world premiere at the BFI IMAX in London on November 26, 2015. It was released theatrically in the United States by Warner Bros. Pictures on December 11, 2015. The release strategy positioned it as a major holiday season contender, though it faced significant competition from other high-profile releases like Star Wars: The Force Awakens. It was later released on Blu-ray and DVD in March 2016.

Reception

Upon release, *In the Heart of the Sea received mixed reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, it holds a 42% approval rating based on 228 reviews. The film's visual effects, particularly the depiction of the whale and the storm, were widely praised, as were performances by Chris Hemsworth and Benjamin Walker. However, many critics felt the narrative framing device with Herman Melville was cumbersome and that the film failed to fully capture the profound psychological depth of its source material. At the Academy Awards, the film was nominated for Best Visual Effects. Commercially, it was considered a box office disappointment, grossing $93.9 million worldwide against a $100 million production budget.

Historical accuracy

The film is based on the well-documented historical event of the sinking of the ''Essex'', drawing directly from survivor accounts like Owen Chase's 1821 narrative and Thomas Nickerson's later testimony. While the core events—the whale attack, the ordeal in the whaleboats, and the resort to cannibalism—are accurate, the film takes significant dramatic license. The characterization of the rivalry between Owen Chase and George Pollard Jr. is heightened, and the framing device involving Herman Melville's interview with an older Nickerson is a fictionalized composite, as Melville's research for Moby-Dick was more broad and not solely based on a single interview. The depiction of the whale's behavior as vengeful and intelligent is an interpretation drawn from the survivors' own perceptions, as recorded in their accounts.

Category:2015 films Category:American films Category:Films directed by Ron Howard