Moby Dick (1998 miniseries)

Moby Dick is a 1998 American television miniseries based on Herman Melville's 1851 novel of the same name. It was filmed in Australia in 1997 and first released in the United States in 1998.[1][2] The miniseries consisted of two episodes, each running two hours with commercials on March 15 and 16 of 1998 on the USA Network.[3]

Moby Dick
DVD cover
Based onMoby-Dick
by Herman Melville
Screenplay byAnton Diether
Franc Roddam
Benedict Fitzgerald (uncredited)
Directed byFranc Roddam
StarringPatrick Stewart
Henry Thomas
Gregory Peck
Country of originUnited States
Australia
Original language(s)English
No. of episodes2
Production
Executive producer(s)Robert Halmi Sr.
Francis Ford Coppola
Fred Fuchs
Producer(s)Franc Roddam
Kris Noble
Running time180 minutes
Production company(s)American Zoetrope, Nine Network Australia,
USA Pictures
BudgetUS $20 million
Release
Original networkUSA Network
Original releaseMarch 15 –
16, 1998

Plot

Ishmael is a young sailor who joins the crew of the whaling ship Pequod. Captain Ahab is in charge of Pequod and he is obsessed in finding and killing Moby Dick. The whale cost him one of his legs. Queequeg meets Ishmael at an inn and joins him in this whaling journey.

Ahab rejects the repeated pleas of Starbuck to stop chasing Moby Dick because the ship is operating at a loss and the quest for the sperm whale could end in everyone's death. Queequeg engages in passive resistance by completely refusing to do any work on the ship and throws down his harpoon.

Starbuck is conflicted with his duty to follow captain orders even when he thinks Ahab is mad. The captain refuses to assist another ship who has lost that captain's son at sea. The crew pulls the Pequod over ice and survives a massive storm. Despite the raving and orders of the mad captain, the crew will not mutiny and die whaling sailors if necessary.

The white whale Moby Dick is found and the hunt is on. The whale is harpooned but it sinks the chase boat. Ahab harpoons the whale but he drowns as Moby Dick dives and takes him under. The white giant smashes into the whaling ship and it sinks. The only survivor is Ishmael.

Cast

Patrick Stewart took the lead role shortly after making a striking reference to the book, and quoting from it, in Star Trek: First Contact.[4]

Gregory Peck appeared as Father Mapple more than 40 years after he played Ahab in the 1956 film adaptation directed by John Huston.

Awards

Gregory Peck won the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor. The series also won awards for its music and was nominated for several Emmy Awards.[5]

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See also

References
  1. Lloyd, Robert (August 1, 2011). "Television review: 'Moby Dick' / William Hurt stars as Captain Ahab in the new version on Encore, but Herman Melville seems to be missing". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 22, 2011.
  2. Russo, Tom (March 13, 1998). "Captain My Captain: Patrick Stewart takes the helm of a new ship in 'Moby Dick'". Entertainment Weekly. Time Warner (422). Retrieved August 4, 2011.
  3. Scott, Tony (March 11, 1998). "Review: 'Moby Dick'". Variety. Retrieved March 17, 2016.
  4. "Captain My Captain". Entertainment Weekly. March 13, 1998. Retrieved November 23, 2011.
  5. Awards, IMDb.com
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