Winter's story continues: "Dolphin Tale 2"

■ 14 December 2014 | 7:37 PM

“DOLPHIN TALE 2”

Blu-ray widescreen, DVD widescreen and Digital HD download, 2014, PG for mild thematic elements

Best extra: A series of short making-of features

RESCUE, REHAB AND RELEASE – that’s the mission of the Clearwater Marine Hospital/Aquarium in Florida. It’s good work – and so is the sequel to 2011’s “Dolphin Tale,” a true story about Winter, a rescued dolphin.

“Dolphin Tale 2” picks up Winter’s story a few years later. For newcomers, the bottlenose dolphin lost the flippers of her tail. Morgan Freeman plays Dr. Cameron McCarthy, a specialist who designs a prosthetic that allows the dolphin to swim and leap again. His gel-like sleeve creation that fits the flipper onto Winter is now used in fitting prosthetics more comfortably for humans.

Who would have guessed that animal rescue could have such a far-reaching benefit? The gel-sleeve has been of specific use to injured veterans.

McCarthy, Winter and other members of the Clearwater Marine Hospital/Aquarium have returned. Thanks to the spread of Winter’s story, the facility has grown; donations are up and people travel from around the world to see her. Now Winter is undergoing another crisis. Dolphins are social animals and need friends of their own species to thrive. “Dolphin Tale 2” shows what happens as staff and volunteers work together to find her a new companion after her aged friend dies. We also learn more about the “Rescue, Rehab, Release” program, like the one at our local Virginia Aquarium & Marine Science Center in Virginia Beach.

This is one gorgeous film. Brought to us by co-writer/director Charles Martin Smith, who also directed “Dolphin Tale,” camerawork was accomplished by Bob Talbot, an underwater/marine wildlife cinematographer, and Daryn Okada, director of photography. There are two beautiful “water ballets,” one where dolphins and humans swim together, another with Winter and with a baby dolphin, Hope, who is integral to the story. (Baby dolphin – yes – too adorable to believe!) “The trick here was to make sure the audience really got that the animal was an emotional character in the movie,” Okada says in “Underwater Magic,” one of four short featurettes that provide a “making-of” experience.

Warner’s high-def transfer provides a picture filled with light, brilliant color and sharp detail. Smith tells us they used much smaller, lighter cameras, enabling them to film quick turns underwater. The sense of motion is excellent. The eight-channel DTS-HD soundtrack is also good. Immersive qualities give a sense of being surrounded by water. Dialogue, ambient sound and score come through cleanly.

Each extra is only a few minutes long; the star is Winter’s continuing saga. We hear from Smith, who also appears in the movie, Freeman, and returning actors Harry Connick Jr., Nathan Gamble (Sawyer), Cozi Zuehlsdorff (Hazel), Ashely Judd and Kris Kristofferson. Bethany Hamilton (“Soul Surfer” 2011), the young champion surfer, who lost her arm in a shark attack, appears as herself in the film and in a bonus feature, “Bethany Hamilton Meets Winter.” Like Winter, Hamilton continues to be an inspiration to amputees everywhere. “Bethany is one of those people who just inspire. She makes people feel good; she makes people want to overcome their problems,” producer Richard Ingber says.

Producer Broderick Johnson agrees. “Teaming her and Winter is, hopefully, great for people who have physical challenges, and who enjoy seeing people overcome those things.”

Other extras include two music videos, “Cozi Zuehlsdorff – ‘Brave Souls’” and “Gavin DeGraw – ‘You Got Me,’” and a blooper reel.

The best thing about “Dolphin Tale 2” is knowing the story is real and ongoing. In “The Mission,” which also shows archival footage of various rescued animals, David Yates, executive producer and CEO of the Clearwater Marine Aquarium, emphasizes their job is to rescue and release injured marine life able to survive in the ocean after treatment. Because of its dynamic expansion, the aquarium/hospital has been able to nearly double the number of rescued animals, Yates says.

But it’s not an easy task. Staff and volunteers become attached to the animals they care for and it’s difficult to let them go – even heart-wrenching. But they do it, and humans and wildlife are the better for it.

With “Dolphin Tale 2,” we all get to keep the story and the mission going. This is a family movie to be enjoyed by all.

— Kay Reynolds

 

Winter"s story continues: "Dolphin Tale 2"