Blockbuster hunk Chris Hemsworth ditches the hammer for an epic nautical adventure that inspired the classic tale Moby Dick

The last two years have been somewhat hectic for Hollywood golden boy Chris Hemsworth. The 32-year-old actor has assumed an eclectic mix of roles ranging from a hammer-wielding superhero to a convicted hacker to a first mate fighting for his life at sea.

“It’s not ideal. The last months have been tough because this (In the Heart of the Sea) and Michael Mann’s movie (Blackhat) shot back-to-back, literally 24 hours between the two of them, and I had the Rush and the Thor tour, so I had four different characters swimming around my head. I was a little schizophrenic,” said the Australian thespian.

Chris relishes the challenge of wearing these diverse and disparate personas but admits it can be draining remembering which hat he is supposed to wearing and when. 

His latest hat is that of the lead In the Heart of the Sea, based on the true story of the Essex ship, that was sunk by a 26-metre sperm whale in the South Pacific in 1821 leaving the crew stranded at sea for 90 days. It is the tale that inspired Moby Dick.

The first mate onboard, Owen Chase, chronicled the events of the ill-fated ship though his accounts were forgotten over time. That changed in 2000 when historian Nathaniel Philbrick resurrected the story by writing a book based on Chase’s report and complemented by a newly-discovered manuscript by the boat’s cabin boy.

Director Ron Howard struggled initially to merge all the details found in the book into a cohesive narrative that would suit conventional film storytelling. There was also a conscious effort to structure the movie as an action-drama rather than a typical period film to make it more appealing to a wider audience.

“It was epic and expansive. It was set in the past, but I realised that we could use today’s technology to make it more than a dusty period piece. I felt we could make a really stunning action-packed, adrenaline-driven drama. I remember thinking, ‘Wow, this could be cool and different,” Hemsworth was quoted as saying.

Much has been said about Hemsworth’s punishing diet to look the part of a starving sailor. His preparation though went beyond consuming boiled eggs and celery.

“I realised pretty soon that I couldn’t fake being a sailor, and I had to put the work in and observe closely how to do it,” he confessed.

“I spent some time in a ship, in a water tank, and then I spent two months on a ship in the Canary Islands. That is where it all came together for me. But it was a constant updating of information, as some of the crew had been doing it for 30 or 40 years. There was a lot to learn.”

Director: Ron Howard

Also starring: Cillian Murphy,
Ben Whishaw and Brendan Gleeson

Running time: 125 minutes

Rating: PG15

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