Free Willy - Ruf der Freiheit

Willy is a wild orca that was trapped and separated from his parents. He is sent to an aquarium. Jesse (Jason James Richter) is a street kid who gets caught vandalizing the tank. He still believes his mom will come back. His social worker Dwight gets him off as long as he cleans up his mess. He's placed with Glen (Michael Madsen) and Annie Greenwood. Jesse is guarded and Glen is reluctant also. At the aquarium, he befriends Willy who saves his life one night. Willy won't perform for trainer Rae Lindley (Lori Petty) but he's willing to do it for Jesse. The owner Dial (Michael Ironside) is under pressure from the non-performing whale.

It's a reasonable family picture. It has a whale and the little kids may find it fascinating. The story is compelling enough that the older kids will also like it. It's very much following a try and true formula. The young lead is acceptable even when he doesn't have the whale. He has some good drama to play off against. It's important to note that Keiko the whale was eventually freed. If that's all the movie achieves, that's plenty.

It was one of my favorite movies when I was a kid. I had followed Keiko ever since. I was happy that he was finally free, but I was very sad that he ended up with a tragic story because of people's mistakes. As for the movie, its impressive music and the scenes where Keiko played with Jesse were enjoyable and beautiful. I wish that amazing final scene on the poster looked like that in the movie. Instead, a phenomenon called animatronics was implemented. Yes, such a scene with an orca may have seemed impossible at that time, but it did not look as good as the poster. It could be worth more. It's a production with some messages.

Oh, this one is underrated here. The story of Jason James Richter's character trying to escape from a life of crime and missing prospects is way beyond the average. The growing affection for Willy is not even stereotyped or clichéd. It's a genuine bond that focuses on two outcast characters who slowly but surely come to experience true friendship and the value of trust. Jason's performance really appealed to me when I saw this movie as a kid. It is a sincere depiction of friendship, of a way out, of fighting for your values against all odds and of never giving up. Right, I'm grown up now, but this is one of the movies of my childhood I'd like to watch again, and I'm sure I'd enjoy it almost as much as back then. Jason James had very few acting appearances, but the Free Willy series assured him his place in movie history. His entire performance in here is sincere and straight, he doesn't laugh nor smile if it wasn't just natural in the specific sequences. His facial expressions and body language fit into the total frame as well. The story has some profoundly human themes to it. I can't help it, I think this one is both entertaining and deep, dealing with emotions and prospects of life, with integrity and courage in the face of danger.

This is a good-looking family drama with marvellous scenes, natural ecologism , gorgeous outdoors and high sensibility . When a boy learns that a beloved killer whale is to be killed by the aquarium owners, the boy risks everything to free the whale . Willy is trapped and his family swims mournfully away . Cut to an angelic street-kid , Jesse (Jason James Richer) , caught graffiti-ing Willy's tank , the only way to escape baby jail he discovers is to go to well-meaning but stiff foster parents (Michael Madsen , Jayne Atkinson) and clean up the tank under the tutelage of Haida Indian Randolph (August Schellemberg) . A 12 year old street kid !. A 3 ton orca whale !. A friendship you could never imagine !. An adventure you'll never forget !. Make room in your heart for a six-ton Pet!!!He is the biggest hero in the whole wide world of adventure!. When You're Six Tons -- And They Call You Killer -- It's Hard To Make Friends...

Agreeable and charming family tale made with sense , sensitivity and wonderful sea images. This is a good-natured family drama with emotion, ecologism, gorgeous outdoors and high sensibility . Many years before , this Orca saga was preceded by a similar film : ¨Namu , the Killer Whale¨ (1966) directed by Laslo Benedek with Robert Lansing . It contains ample and gorgeous sea vistas, being very well photographed the exterior scenes, as well as underwater images with the great Orca whale jumping and diving. This well acted movie has a straight-faced tone which is hard to resist . Including good messages : love for animals , environmentalism , fraternity , fight for survival , need for family coexistence friendship , while boy and whale get on because they are both looking for a family .

Special mention for excellent musical score by magnificent composer Basil Poledouris , including sweeping strings accompanying the opening sequence of balletic whales cavorting in brilliant blue sea , changing abruptly to cacophony as the bad guys with nets chug up in their tugs . The motion picture was well directed by notorious filmmaker Simon Wincer . He is a Western expert , as he emigrated Hollywood from Australia and subsequently directed to Tom Selleck in ¨Monte Walsh¨ , ¨Crossfire trail¨ and ¨Quigley Down Under¨ to Paul Hogan in ¨Relampago Jack¨ and ¨Cocodrile Dundee in L. A.¨ and usually directs episodes for TV mini-series, such as ¨Into the West¨, ¨The Ponderosa¨ , ¨Lonesome Dove¨ and ¨The adventures of young Indiana Jones¨ , among others . Rating : good for the sensitive direction and proficient film-making ; the result is a sort of pacifist-ecological adventure for kiddies and adults. Worthwhile watching . The pic will appeal to animals enthusiasts .

Free Willy is the quintessential 90s family film along the lines of Home Alone - innocent, schmaltzy and full of cloying sentimentality. It contains everything you've seen before and has passed into cliché - misunderstood kid who just wants to prove himself, heartfelt friendship with a precious animal, plot to thwart secret bad guys and so on - but it does so with such determined idealism that you can't help but feel a sheer, overwhelming joy. Free Willy is the family movie to end all family movies, a condensation of so many feelgood tropes that it collapses under its own gravity to form a singularity of Hollywood magic.