DVD movie commentary/review

A palatable issue is better on the senses than a heavy handed approach to an issue.

Of the recent Ron Howard films I have seen, the issues are presented palatably. Howard’s films such as A Beautiful Mind (2001), The Da Vinci Code (2006), and his latest In the Heart of the Sea (2015) are rendered in such a way that the audience is not hit over the head with a pet topic.

The issues in films directed by Ron Howard are subtle, but can be unpacked.

In the Heart of the Sea is a historical survival film recounting the inspiration for whale adventure novel Moby Dick. The film is also about whaling and if that was about the money and greed or social and economic progress.

But questioning whaling seems a moot point today as whaling has been outlawed. We may ask aloud: what is the relevance of a whaling film today, apart from the environmentalists taking the few whaling countries to account.

However, the impact of whaling in the 1800s and 1900s was significant. Whale oil fueled lamps and was an ingredient in soap. Later, kerosene was used in lamps instead of whale oil and the use of whale oil declined and eventually ceased production.

Therefore, In the Heart of the Sea is historical, but there is a universal point the film is making: human life over time should make progress, albeit with quite a few bumps along the way. That’s why the use of whale oil in lamps was followed by kerosene although whale oil was not the most ideal use of the planet’s resources, as In the Heart of the Sea shows.

Like in other Ron Howard films, humans discover the capabilities of the planet, but also its limitations and boundaries. The attacking whale against the whaling boat in Heart of the Sea is saying to us that enough is enough and nature should be respected as nature.

One day, the business people, law makers and people learnt how far they could go, but life keeps on going, into the future, and perhaps we are learning and growing wiser at each step.