Two stories masterfully told in one movie - ****1/2

It is amazing how this movie went through a lot of filters before it came to us as a film.  It started with true events, that became an inspiration for  a book, and that story in itself became a book from which this movie was based on.  The story traveled a long ways from history to become a film such that it really is not  surprising that the part of history where it came from is a totally different world altogether.

This story is about the ill-fated voyage of the .American whaling ship Essex and the struggles of its survivors.  The story is told through an interview by Moby Dick author Herman Melville and the only living survivor Thomas Nickerson.  While the adventure of the Essex is being told, Herman and Thomas each are coming into their own being, the former as a writer and the latter as a man coming into terms with his own demons.

Two stories running parallel to each other, alternately serving as both background and main story; the interview about the Essex and the adventure of the Essex.  The opening scene establishes the two main characters of the interview, Herman on the brink of discovering a source for his masterpiece and Thomas on the brink of breaking through a wall that he built for himself thus shunning away the people who love him.  Then the story rolls along the incredible adventure of the captain  and crew of Essex as they try to survive the harsh elements of being stranded in the middle o the sea.  Two stories very well told, tied together through the masterful work of director Ron Howard.  To me both stories come equally compelling and intense. Both stories are about courage and both glorifying the concept of truth and honesty.  Watching this film feels like a journey in itself and the end of this journey is represented by classic tale of Moby Dick.