Experience a riveting and inspiring true life adventure aboard the high tech sloop Morning Light. Fifteen rookie sailors have one goal in mind, to be part of her crew, racing in the most revered sailing competition on Earth, the Transpac Yacht Race. From start to finish, its a rollercoaster ride of emotions and physical challenges, beginning with six months of intense training. Only eleven will survive to race in the grueling 2,225 mile Transpac. Matching wits and skills against experienced pros and the unforgiving, unpreditcable Pacific Ocean, these young men and women develop a powerful bond and prove how dedication, teamwork and an unyielding spirit can overcome the greatest of odds.
Bonus Features include: Stories from the Sea with host Jason Earles, ESPN Special Making the CutMorning Light concerns the 2006 TRANSPAC, an annual, open-ocean race between sailing sloops crossing the Pacific Ocean from California to Hawaii. The film focuses on the team manning the Morning Light, 15 young men and women who undergo intensive training over months and then are left to their own devices racing against sailors far more experienced than themselves. Morning Light is divided between a competition section that resembles a broken-hearts-and-all MTV reality show (with a total of 20 people vying for the 15 spots) and the race itself. Neither is particularly fascinating: the former just feels like an extension of television, while the racing action is dominated by technical speak and visuals that will largely appeal to viewers who have spent a lot of time on boats. The rest of us end up sitting through large patches of documentary footage that don’t provide a clear understanding of what’s going on or what any of it really means to the individuals involved. Morning Light did not have to look and move like cable sports channel fodder. The film could have more closely resembled, say, a Warren Miller winter sports documentary, which is almost guaranteed to appeal to non-sportsmen. As it is, a viewer feels like a fifth wheel (or the sailing equivalent). –Tom Keogh
Buy “Morning Light” For Only $12.29
April 27, 2008
#1
Version: U.S.A / BVHE / Region Free
Aspect ratio: 1.85:1
MPEG-4 AVC BD-50 / AACS
Running time: 1:37:56
Feature size: 29,013,700,608 bytes
Disc size: 44,457,194,229 bytes
Total bit rate: 39.50 Mbps
Average video bit rate: 32.54 Mbps
DTS-HD Master Audio English 3793 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 3793 kbps / 24-bit (DTS Core: 5.1 / 48 kHz / 1509 kbps / 24-bit)
Dolby Digital Audio French 640 kbps 5.1 / 48 kHz / 640 kbps
Subtitles: English SDH, Chinese, French, Indonesian, Korean, Malay, Portuguese, Spanish, Thai
Number of chapters: 13
# Stories from the sea: Hosted by Jason Earles (HD – 28 minutes)
# ESPN Special – Making the cut (HD – 41 minutes)
April 27, 2008
#2
Who would have thought, back a few years ago, when there was much ado going on at the top of the Disney Organization, that the above words would actually appear on a Walt Disney Pictures release?
Morning Light is the true chronicle of a hand-picked team of young people who are given the chance to train and compete in the Transpac sailing event, which has been Roy E. Disney’s passion since the mid-seventies.
I’m not a sailor but I have run marathons and triathlons and know the feeling of those comparably small triumphs (though I’ll never win — in fact one year i was passed by a man walking his dog!) The character of the individuals chosen, their work ethic and team spirit is very sincere and a far cry from the preening, backstabbing types that infect many TV reality shows. This follows a reality show format with lots of comments from the participants as well as a selection process where several are eliminated and are left to send messages from the mainland (where the food seems to be really good).
I found it much more compelling then the current crop of Hollywood sports movies in which a ragtag bunch of can’t-possibly-win team members somehow come together under a down-and-out coach and eventually win as music swells… you know what I mean. The crew in Morning Light are a very likable group of people who you find yourself routing for (parent’s note: there are a handful of words that earned this film a PG rating, but not nearly the kind of language also common on many reality shows).
The photography is stunning, especially the night shots, which I’m hoping are not computer generated since they are so breathtaking (say it ain’t so, Roy). The score is good too, with contemporary music, songs and even a number by members of the crew at the end of the film. Where’s the soundtrack album?
There are only two extras but both are rich in rounding out the full scope of this project. Hannah Montana’s Jason Earles hosts one feature about the film’s production itself, which sheds more light on the camera work, training and other elements. An ESPN special focuses on the elimination, showing more of the earlier hopefuls and clearly how some with “attitudes” were wisely given a polite dismissal.
In a sea of poor role models, kids can certainly do worse then getting to know this group of youths who not only worked hard and showed integrity but also went on to promising futures in careers or continuing education.
April 27, 2008
#3
With a few exceptions, Disney has not done many documentaries. But that made me even more curious about this film. Walt’s nephew Roy Disney is a sailing enthusiast, and he decided to sponsor 15 eighteen to twenty-three year olds to train to compete in the 2007 TransPac race. This documentary follows the group for the entire six months they trained as well as the actual race.
Now if you are wondering what exactly the TransPac is, it’s a race that covers the 2000+ miles from Long Beach California to Diamond Head, Hawaii, the longest stretch of open ocean. For sailors, this is considered the ultimate race.
The documentary starts with the training, which involves everything from physical fitness to emergency preparations and, you know, actual sailing.
Unfortunately, only 11 of the sailors can actually man their boat, called Morning Light, for the actual race. After four months together, the group must select the actual team.
Then comes the day of the actual race. In a race like this, any little mistake can win or lose it. With that kind of pressure, can they win?
This documentary really breaks down into two halves. The first half, the training, is certainly interesting, and I learned a lot about sailing from it. Things get even more interesting when they switch to the actual race. I was drawn into their quest to win even if it wasn’t nail biting suspense.
But what really got me was how likable everyone was. I’m used to reality TV fair where people seem to be cast more for how obnoxious they can be than anything else. Yes, this movie had a few moments of drama between various people, but it was never overdone and mainly focused on the positive of them working together.
Of course, my biggest wish was that they would have turned this into a TV series. 100 minutes just wasn’t enough to capture everything that happened during those six months. Heck, I really only felt like I got to know three of the 15 kids. 13 hours would have given us a better feel for what they really went through and learned.
If we aren’t going to get the longer series version of the story, this one is well worth watching. I thoroughly enjoyed this look into a sport I didn’t know much about.
April 28, 2008
#4
I saw this movie in the theater the day it was released. It is about a group of young adults with a burning desire to achieve thier goal…..it’s
all the more relevant if you happen to enjoy sailing. I can’t wait to add
this film to my collection.
April 28, 2008
#5
This is a great movie/documentary that goes behind the scenes to show what racing teams go through to prepare for a big race. It’s also inspiring to see Roy Disney challenge the racing world to invite and create a team with very little experience compared to the other teams. I had no idea that the majority of the members of a professional racing team are well into their mid thirties to early forties. Roy opened up the door to influence the norm of a standard set in place. These young men and women were presented with a chance of a life time and took it. What an awesome experience.