The original "Dolphin Tale" was a fun and heart-warming film, based on the real story of "Winter," a rescued dolphin at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium in Clearwater, Florida, who was fitted with a prosthetic tail after hers was lost following a tangle with a crab trap.
In "Dolphin Tale 2," nearly the whole cast of the first film returns to tell the follow-up story of the aquarium's struggle to keep Winter after her companion, named "Panama," dies.
As highly social creatures, dolphins apparently are legally required to have companionship in captivity, and the aquarium was pushed into the difficult choice of keeping a healthy dolphin to accompany Winter – which runs counter to its policy of rescue and release – or see the popular dolphin shipped to another facility.
Just when all hope is lost at the climax of the film, a new dolphin, appropriately named "Hope," is brought to the center, and it becomes a race against time and dolphin nature to pair up the new dolphin with the old in order to keep Winter at Clearwater.
The sequel film is just as lovely and warm and positive-themed as the first, and it ends on an inspirational note sure to please family audiences.
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My only criticism of the movie is its pace, which is a bit slow throughout most of the film, until "Hope" arrives, and I noticed some of the kids in the theater that may have the loved the first "Dolphin Tale" found this second one to be a bit dull.
To be fair, however, the characters in "Dolphin Tale 2" are a few years older than the first movie, and so are the themes. The sequel seems targeted more at teens than tots, and I suspect it will appeal most to those viewers in the 11-15 age range.
Specifically, the story focuses on the young protagonists – teen dolphin keepers Sawyer and Hazel – who are growing in their importance and responsibility at the aquarium. Adulthood is right around the corner, and like most teens, they clamor for more freedom and more authority to make their own decisions.
But "Dolphin Tale 2" is exemplary in that it also shows that with more independence comes more responsibility.
One scene in particular is a fantastic teaching moment, as young Hazel learns she must confront her father, but rather than just trying to talk him into doing what she wants, she asks only for the opportunity to make a responsible decision. Then she buckles down to make the right decision, no matter how much it hurts. It's a unique moment among many such "coming of age" scenes on film.
Still later, Hazel's father models the always difficult stage of trusting his daughter to spread her wings and fly, but without the "parents are so controlling" mantra that infects so many similar scenes in other films.
Finally, the father models making an incredibly difficult decision of his own and in the end insists it be made because of what is morally right.
The film isn't nearly as entertaining as many others for family or general audiences to choose from, but for warm-hearted, positive-themed family fare, "Dolphin Tale 2" is an excellent choice.
Content advisory:
- "Dolphin Tale 2," rated PG, contains neither profanity nor obscenity.
- The movie has little sexuality, save for a shirtless boy, some minor cleavage and some characters in form-fitting wetsuits. Surfer Bethany Hamilton (of "Soul Surfer" fame) has an extended scene at the beginning, swimming with the dolphins, and her swim trunks are very short, resulting in lots of leg and looks at her (clothed) behind.
- The film's only significant violence occurs when an angered dolphin lashes out at an aquarium worker, resulting in a tense moment and minor injury.
- The movie has no significant religious or occult content, though there's a line in the song playing during the credits that talk about being there for others when the "demons" come.