Inspired by the true story that captured the hearts of people across the world ... A small town news reporter and a Greenpeace volunteer ... are joined by rival world superpowers to save a family of majestic gray whales trapped by rapidly forming ice in the Arctic Circle. Local newsman Adam Carlson can’t wait to escape the northern tip of Alaska for a bigger market. But just when the story of his career breaks, the world comes chasing it, too.
Reviews
The Daily Mail
James O'Brien
“Bonus points are available for spotting a young Sarah Palin in the archive footage with which proceedings are liberally sprinkled.”
10/02/2012
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The New York Times
Rachel Saltz
“Savvy enough to allow that many of the people pitching in do so for reasons other than altruism, and it is sentimental enough to have those characters changed by their commitment to the cause. ”
02/02/2012
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The Los Angeles Times
Michael Phillips
“One should never expect the whole or even the partial truth in any film based on a true story. This one tells its sort-of-true version of events in a democratic and humane fashion, by way of a rangy, lively group of competing interests ... The film doesn't look and feel as if made on laptops in California. Also there's no attempt to humanize or goo-goo-eyes the whales themselves.”
03/02/2012
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The Times
Wendy Ide
“It’s earnest, manipulative and has all the subtlety of a snowplough. But through sheer force of will and prolonged exposure to its impressive animatronic cetaceans, Big Miracle achieves an emotional momentum which is hard to resist.”
10/02/2012
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Total Film
Neil Smith
“That everyone has their own motives doesn’t make us less receptive to a happy outcome. Rather, it serves to dilute the saccharine that would otherwise cling to the story like barnacles on a flipper, turning what could have easily been another Free Willy into something a little more astute.”
03/02/2012
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The Observer
Philip French
“The title of this film is ironic. It wasn't a "big miracle" of international co-operation. Everyone exploited the crisis ... They all had personal or professional agendas to pursue, ranging from an oil company boss eager to gain kudos and further drilling rights, to Ronald Reagan polishing his reputation in its final months and securing the election of his successor, George Bush.
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12/02/2012
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The Evening Standard
The Evening Standard
“Ponderously sincere but it does tell a good story. ”
10/02/2012
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The Guardian
Peter Bradshaw
“The whales themselves look like they are about to die of boredom.”
09/02/2012
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The Independent
Anthony Quinn
“It's enough to make you long for the days when they just made things up.”
10/02/2012
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Empire Magazine
Olly Richards
“Takes some believing in the era of global warming (too much ice? Really?) but the sledgehammer emoting should let you know you're in a family drama. ”
06/02/2012
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The Scotsman
Alistair Harkness
“It doesn’t seem to know how to convey the majesty or the drama inherent in the natural world. Instead everything is filtered through the dull perspectives of characters that aren’t interesting to start with. ”
09/02/2012
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Time Out
Derek Adams
“By-the-book dialogue and lame performances do the film no favours but, hey, worse things happen at sea.”
06/02/2012
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The Sunday Times
Edward Porter
“A cosy movie with no troublesome villains.
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12/02/2012
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