The film, and its underlying research by Nathaniel Philbrick, chronicles the 1820 sinking of the American whaleship Essex by an enraged sperm whale. The story explores:
The film recounts the 1820 sinking of the American whaling ship by a sperm whale in the middle of the Pacific Ocean. The crew, stranded in small whaleboats, resorted to starvation, dehydration, and ultimately cannibalism. This real-life catastrophe inspired Herman Melville to write Moby-Dick . Index Of In The Heart Of The Sea --39-LINK--39-