Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
Jason James Richter | ... | Jesse | |
Lori Petty | ... | Rae Lindley | |
Jayne Atkinson | ... | Annie Greenwood | |
August Schellenberg | ... | Randolph Johnson | |
Michael Madsen | ... | Glen Greenwood | |
Michael Ironside | ... | Dial | |
Richard Riehle | ... | Wade | |
Mykelti Williamson | ... | Dwight Mercer | |
Michael Bacall | ... | Perry | |
Danielle Harris | ... | Gwenie | |
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Isaiah Malone | ... | Vector |
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Betsy Toll | ... | Passerby #1 |
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Rob Sample | ... | Passerby #2 |
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Merrilyn Jones | ... | Passerby #3 |
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Mickey Gaines | ... | Waiter |
Fishermen separate a young orca whale (Willy) from his parents and he ends up in a fish bowl at a marina. Meanwhile, a street kid runs afoul of the law and gets caught vandalising the marina, but his social worker gets him off the hook (so to speak) provided he cleans up his mess at the marina. While there, he befriends the whale and teaches him tricks, something the trainer hasn't been able to do. But when Willy is a dud in front of the audience, the marina owner plans some bad things, and the boy and his friends must try to (*** MAJOR SPOILERS ***) free Willy. Written by Ed Sutton <esutton@mindspring.com>
5.2 is shameful. I loved this movie. It has all of the elements of a great film; compelling characters, plot, and an end lesson. I think that most family movies these days lack a lot of moral posturing that made films like this one so memorable. I know that I wanted to "Save the Whales" after I saw this movie. Heck, I wanted to be a whale. I don't care how many stars it got, this movie is a childhood treasure for me and I think of it every time I hear the Michael Jackson song, "Will You Be There?" I wish that my younger siblings remembered this movie or the amount of joy it brought us slightly older kids in my family. The sequel certainly left something to be desired, but not the original. Yep, it will hold a special whale-shaped place in my heart.