Sperm whales are NOT malignant, cruel nor vengeful. Don't ascribe HUMAN traits to other animal species!

The Essex was captained by an irresponsible idiot, who decided to go hunt the BIGGEST Odontocete species in a DAMAGED ship with insufficient provisions, and had in her crew a pyromaniac who burned down an island where they could have gotten more food - and thereby also caused the extinction of two species - for a PRANK!

If an animal is attacked it will fight for survival. The flight-or-flight response isn't triggered or driven by cruelty or vengeance. We only have the story of the WHALING ship's debacle from the survivors - who most definitely was embellishing and making up a supernaturally "cunning and cruel" sperm whale, larger than any ever seen before - to EXCUSE their criminal negligence and stupidity that led to the death of more than half of the crew, and the CANNIBALISM, which could have gotten them prosecuted as murderers: It's not their fault, the evil whale MONSTER hunted THEM! The boy who they murdered and ate told them he wanted them to do it! Stupid story doesn't even make sense, why would the whale just lie there motionless if it wasn't hurt or trapped? Think about it, they were claiming the WHALE tried to trick them into believing it was dead! Yeah, right.

Melville's white "whale" is cunning and cruel because it's NOT a whale. It's GOD! Clearly, Melville didn't believe the survivors' self-sparing story of a supernatural evil whale!

Since this movie is purportedly about the factual whaler Essex' disastrous trip, and not Melville's work of FICTION - told to him by the dude who sank TWO ships and ATE his cousin - I don't understand what you're saying about Moby Dick (novel about fictitious old man with God ISSUES), and Jaws (movie about fictitious evil-super-shark with diet ISSUES)!

With a name like Eric Henriksen, you should know more about whales!

your headline is both a cliche and at odds with the content of your review. ironiy and sarcasm in headlines aren't impossible. but maybe choose a different hill.