In the Heart of the Sea

Ron Howard is a world class director. A man who truly knows how to put a movie together. Unfortunately, his latest, In the Heart of the Sea, is not up to his usual impeccable standard of excellence. It has several things going for it, not the least of which is Chris Hemsworth's undeniable screen charisma, even if he has barely a role to speak of here. Gleeson makes a decent narrator, but both Cillian Murphy and new Spiderman Tom Holland are wasted. The narrative, which served as the inspiration for Moby Dick, should have been the clincher. A battle at sea with a 100 ft whale, who doesn't want to see that? Yet even the CGI whale encounters are rather ho-hum, some thrilling moments and impressive sound notwithstanding. The film moves along at a decent pace, but is flimsy where it counts, and never quite takes off like you're expecting it to. To my recollection, the only time Howard has failed to deliver a thoroughly enjoyable and emotionally stirring piece of entertainment with a solid foundation to work off of. Disappointing is surely the word.