Dolphin Tale

Name: Dolphin Tale
Genre: Drama
Released: September 23, 2011
Duration: 113 min
Rating: 64
Cast: Ashley Judd, Harry Connick Jr., Morgan Freeman

2011

METASCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 31 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Generally favorable reviews based on 65 Ratings

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6.8

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6.8	User Score Generally favorable reviews based on 65 Ratings

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Dolphin Tale

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Movie Details & Credits

Warner Bros. Pictures | Release Date: September 23, 2011 | PG

Starring: Ashley Judd, Harry Connick Jr., Morgan Freeman

Summary: Dolphin Tale is inspired by the amazing true story of a brave dolphin and the compassionate strangers who banded together to save her life. Swimming free, a young dolphin is caught in a crab trap, severely damaging her tail. She is rescued and transported to the Clearwater Marine Hospital, where she is named Winter. But her fight forDolphin Tale is inspired by the amazing true story of a brave dolphin and the compassionate strangers who banded together to save her life. Swimming free, a young dolphin is caught in a crab trap, severely damaging her tail. She is rescued and transported to the Clearwater Marine Hospital, where she is named Winter. But her fight for survival has just begun. Without a tail, Winter's prognosis is dire. It will take the expertise of a dedicated marine biologist, the ingenuity of a brilliant prosthetics doctor, and the unwavering devotion of a young boy to bring about a groundbreaking miracle—a miracle that might not only save Winter but could also help scores of people around the world. The real Winter, who plays herself in Dolphin Tale, today serves as a symbol of courage, perseverance and hope to millions of people—both able and disabled—who have been touched by her remarkable story of recovery and rehabilitation. (Warner Bros.)
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Director: Charles Martin Smith

Genre(s): Drama

Rating: PG

Runtime: 113 min

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Critic Reviews

Steve Persall

Sep 21, 2011

Director Charles Martin Smith presents the kind of movie that gives squeaky-clean a good name. Read full review

Ty Burr

Sep 22, 2011

The dolphin is, quite simply, remarkable, and the unstated message of resilience and adaptation ripples easily off the screen to the smallest viewers. Read full review

Claudia Puig

Sep 22, 2011

The story of healing and courage is told with a refreshing lack of cynicism, not surprising since it's from the same producers as the wonderful "My Dog Skip." Read full review

Keith Staskiewicz

Sep 21, 2011

While the plot occasionally feels like "Free Willy" without the drama, it's a cute story if you don't mind temporarily trading in your cynicism for a bag of popcorn. Read full review

Kyle Smith

Sep 23, 2011

A reasonably uplifting kids movie if you don't think about it too much. I get paid to think about things too much, and effective as the movie is, it nevertheless left me slightly put off. Read full review

Roger Moore

Sep 21, 2011

No, this isn't how it really happened. But director Charles Martin Smith ("Air Bud") wrings plenty of heartfelt tears and a few laughs out of this fictionalized account. Read full review

M. E. Russell

Sep 22, 2011

Dolphin Tale is inoffensive enough -- little kids will probably dig it -- and I'm not suggesting that family-friendly docudramas should tightly conform to real life. But when they do embellish, they should distill the story into something more compelling, rather than watering it down with pleasant-but-utterly-forgettable inspirational boilerplate. Read full review

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User Reviews

kristoffer15

Oct 11, 2011

I'm a huge Morgan Freeman fan so I guess I was a little bit bias giving this movie a 10, but it was worth it. The animation needs more polishing but the storyline especially the end part gave this movie that edge over free willy

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Aquophis

Feb 6, 2012

I was rather taken aback when I did some background reading subsequently after watching and discovered that the actual events were, in fact, a great deal different from what I saw in the movie.
Aside from that, it's a happy, charming movie of the feel-good variety, although I was annoyed howI was rather taken aback when I did some background reading subsequently after watching and discovered that the actual events were, in fact, a great deal different from what I saw in the movie.
Aside from that, it's a happy, charming movie of the feel-good variety, although I was annoyed how the young boy, Slater, was portrayed as "special" and having some sort of profound connection with the dolphin that no one else had.… Expand