Review of In the Heart of the Sea (2015) by Waleed A — 16 Dec 2015

Parts of IN THE HEART OF THE SEA are as visually and dramatically compelling as the scenes in any movie this year. But many of the visuals were just so gray, drab, and unconvincing, and the characters were sketchy, if interesting.

And what made Nathaniel Philbrick's nonfiction book so great was its wealth of interesting detail on any number of topics--which of course couldn't go into a movie. Nice that they had a frame story featuring Herman Melville (well-played by the estimable Ben Whishaw) that emphasized the story's cultural influence.