Going Into- The Heart of the Sea

I've always had an idea of what the story of Moby-Dick was about; the great white whale, Captain Ahab's obsession, but I never imagined that the events surrounding the book were inspired by things that actually took place. 

Watching the trailer for the movie, you would think that it is near impossible and it's just hard to wrap your head around it. Which is what was going through actor Chris Hemsworth's head when he handed the script to award winning director Ron Howard while they were both working on Rush (my movie review here)  

Hemsworth, who stars in the film as Essex First Mate Owen Chase, remarks, “I loved the script from the start. ‘In the Heart of the Sea’ is about heroism and people being tested beyond their limits in absolutely every way. I was also captivated by the psychological thriller aspect of the whale turning the tables on them. There is something incredibly mysterious about how this animal is portrayed—why the whale goes on the attack, which was unlike anything the Essex crew had ever encountered. The hunter becomes the hunted.”

Howard acknowledges that when Hemsworth initially approached him about the project, “I didn’t know anything about the Essex and didn’t know the script was based on events that were very real. But when I learned this had actually happened, it was mind-blowing. I instantly began to visualize a movie that would be raw and intense…a movie that I would want to see, which is the crucial litmus test for me.”

The extraordinary journey of the Essex and her crew was chronicled by Nathaniel Philbrick in his bookIn the Heart of the Sea: The Tragedy of the Whaleship Essex. The author and historian, who calls Nantucket home, had a long-held fascination with the industry that had put the small Massachusetts island on the map. “The book grew out of my curiosity about how it was back in the day when Nantucket was the capital of American whaling. This was a story that got under my skin.”

Hemsworth believes the film could not have been in better hands than Howard's. “Ron has the biggest heart of anyone I know and has the best work ethic,” says Hemsworth. “As a filmmaker, he is always pushing the envelope. You look at the movies he’s done in his career and you can’t put them in a box—from huge comedies to compelling dramas to big action, he’s done it all, and done it with integrity and intelligence. ‘In the Heart of the Sea’ was a demanding endeavor for all of us, and when you go through something like that, you need to be arm-in-arm with one another, and supporting each other. He constantly kept us on our toes, but that’s what you want as an actor—to be challenged and inspired.”

Howard reveals that is always his goal, noting, “When I go to the movies I want to be transported, and I saw ‘In the Heart of the Sea’ as an exciting opportunity to transport audiences. I wanted to take them on a ride in a really vivid, cool way. I realized that telling the story the way it should be told was full of challenges, but they were challenges that could now be met. We could put it on the big screen in a way that was convincing, exciting and lived up to the promise of what the film could offer.”

I actually bought a copy of Herman Melville's Moby Dick but I couldn't get passed Chapter 1 (honestly Ishmael, that is a whole lot of thoughts to go through) I want to try again when I get the chance, in the mean time catching In the Heart of the Sea will be more than enough to get me inspired. :) 

Director Ron Howard on the set of "In The Heart of the Sea"

Opening across the Philippines on December 3, 2015 in theaters and IMAX®, “In the Heart of the Sea” is distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.