Dir. Charles Martin Smith, USA , 2011, 113 mins
Cast. Harry Connick Jr., Nathan Gamble, Ashley Judd, Kris Kristofferson, Morgan Freeman
Review by Michelle Moore
This year has seen its fair share of children’s movies and family films, from Harry Potter and Horrid Henry to Gnomeo and Juliet and Kung Fu Panda 2 . Dolphin Tale however, is unlike anything else released not only this year but for many years past.
Inspired by a true story, Dolphin Tale is about a bottlenose dolphin called Winter who is spotted injured off the Florida coast by a young boy named Sawyer Nelson (Gamble). Winter is rescued and taken to the Clearwater Marine Aquarium. The injured dolphin loses her tail after being trapped in a crab trap and when she fails to feed, all hope seems lost. That is until Sawyer visits and she perks up. He motivates her to survive and drives everyone around him to save the dolphin, including enlisting the help of a prosthetics expert to make an appendage to replace Winter’s missing tail.
You hear about all the bad things that happen to animals in the world, so watching a true story about a group of compassionate and caring individuals, especially young children, looking after an injured animal, is very uplifting. One of the most amazing features of the film is the way that Winter is treated like human. If people can be fitted with artificial limbs for why can’t Winter have an artificial tail? The persistence shown by the characters – when one approach doesn’t work, the people involved don’t give up hope but carry on until they have found the perfect tail substitute.
Working alongside a live animal must have its challenges but Harry Connick Jr. and Nathan Gamble make it look simple. There are some really heart-warming scenes with Winter and Gamble that have you reminiscing about scenes in Free Willy. Dolphin Tale plays successfullyon the emotions: sorrow when the dolphin is found, relief when she is rescued, dread when she refuses to feed, happiness when Sawyer encourages her, excitement when she begins to swim yet sadness when it appears she may not survive and finally the film ends on a happy note. You’re only human if you get a little teary eyed watching this movie. It has everything a family film should have and is based on a true story, about which we are given more information as the credits roll.
The film is released in 3D, so one might have expected a few more scenes where people are splashed with water or the dolphin leaps out from the screen. But there are very few instances where something happens which make a good 3D effect, the occasional splash and that’s about it. However the 3D does make the movie feel much more inviting, it brings the audience into the story and on a few occasions up close and personal with a dolphin.
There have not been many films released recently that have been aimed at all the family, but Dolphin Tale has it all. Here’s hoping this tale will encourage all viewers to respect and care for all animals in the environment, not only those as beautiful as Winter.
