User reviews

I did not know there was a fourth 'Free Willy'. This is not exactly a follow-up. There's no connection between previous films and this, except the Orca named as Willy. They call it a reboot, but instead they should have turned it into a prequel. Because this storyline was very much like that kind. I'm not a big fan of this franchise, so I was not expecting anything big. One of the reason I watched it for our Steve Irwin's beloved daughter. This is her acting debute and she was quite good, though not the ideal one.

She as Kirra lives alone with her single father and after he met with an accident, she was sent to her grandfather's in South Africa. The old man who runs a small seaside amusement park, Kirra does not find hard to get adjusted, not without initial dislike for him. But it was when she finds a baby Orca that trapped in the park's small lagoon. Since she begins to fight for its freedom, but has to go through many obstacles and in the end how the story end was told with a tiny twist.

Not a bad film. Small cost film, a neat production. Nice performances too. Simple and predictable story, but would work well for little kids. Beautiful places, well, most of the film was shot in a single location, though it looked very nice. And the killer whale calf was a toy in most of the closer shots, as well in a few stunt sequences. Not a film for deliberately jump in to watch, but if you decide to watch, just keep away your grownup egos to enjoy it as a kid. Particularly for its message, to save the wild animals from human's captivity.

6/10

I bought the movie in a set of pack of 4 with the first 3 intending to relive a peace of the 90's. Now certain aspects of the movie are right, and the idea is sort of there. the plot could have been developed a bit more. But I have a feeling this movie was intended to drag in the interest of a new generation of kids to get there interest going. Today, the kids are all watching computerized cartoons, and the idea, I think is to drum up the sales and to teach kids a interest of it, so they wont mind watching the older movies from the 90's which are much better. Oh yes, the actors and actresses did a good job for what they had to work with. A whale that washes into a cove is a whale that's stuck. Can't go nowhere and a man wants it. Family movies to obvious? Depends on which ones you watch. Are the 90's in this movie? Nope. The 90's are done. If you wanna go back to the 90's where you grew up, my advice is to get movies you might have watched growing up: Home Alone & H.A. 2, Free Willy 1; 2; 3. LOL. Kids today are NOT 90's kids and wont be. Or even those darn kid movies u watched as a kid. LOL, even if they were kids. As for the above movie, use it to get your kids interested in the originals. :)

The fact that this movie is associated with Free Willy 1,2, or 3 is disgraceful! I was excited to see another Free Willy come out but in the end it was a bust. I purchased the movie and wish I could get my money back. The only scenes that focused on Orcas and not Bindi Irwin were computer generated images of whales. Also, Bindi blindfolds "Willy" (the impostor) which I think is a form of animal cruelty. The story was way more focused on Bindi and Beau than orca whales. Also, some people are calling it Free Willy 4 and it is not a sequel, but definitely not a remake. Bring back the original cast and make an actual Free Willy 4 with real whales and passionate human beings who aren't just trying to get their 15 minutes of fame. Bindi's a cute girl and a decent actress, but we watch Free Willy to see whales. We miss you Jesse!!!

This movie should not have been made, what is wrong with TV and movie producers these days.

More important it should not be called free Willy 4. Seriously.. its made 10 years later and has nothing to do with the original films and it takes place in like Britain or something. They couldn't have named it something else! And what is with the random penguin.. horrible movie, horrible acting. Just garbage there is a reason why this never made it to theaters. They only reason i tried watching this was because it came in a pack with the 3 original movies I think i might just throw it away.

Growing up loving the first 3 Free Willy Movies, I was obviously excited when I heard there was going to be a new one, but I found myself almost completely disappointed by this . . . "sequel".

The only relation that this film has to the "original three films" is the fact that we just happen to have a - much younger - orca named Willy and a - much younger and feminine - adolescent with severe family issues.

Now I do not claim that the original three Free Willy movies were the best films Hollywood has ever had to offer, but this film fails to achieve the structure of the original films - it just doesn't belong! The producers probably slapped "FREE WILLY" on the title to insure that they would at least get a little business from the folks that loved the 90s Willy.

And if that is the truth, they were right - for the most part. However, they did not get any business from this 90s girl! I checked this movie for free - thanks to my public library.

But, alas, this movie may not be a complete tragedy for everyone. I speculate that folks who did see or grow up loving any of the first three Free Willy films, may moderately enjoy this film in its simplicity.

I bought this DVD for two reasons. First, I'm a long-time fan of the Bridges acting family. Second, I was a huge fan of Steve Irwin and I thought that the combination of Bindi Irwin and Beau Bridges would be marvelous. For me, it was. I have read the negative reviews of this movie here and, while the plot is pretty predictable (what family-oriented film plot isn't?), I thought that the chemistry between the actors was wonderful and I disagree with the cynics, especially about Bindi's performance. I found Bindi Irwin's performance to be charming and Beau Bridges didn't disappoint either. Together, they are irresistible even in an obvious plot like this one, and the music is lovely as well.

I have no small children at this time and as yet I have no grandchildren. I bought this DVD for myself, and I would do it again. This film is fun and joyous and brought tears to my eyes at the same time. It is engaging and appealing on its own, even with the reference to the "Free Willy" franchise. This film could stand on its own without that title.

Australia should consider Bindi Irwin to be a national treasure, and I found this movie to be absolutely charming.

"Free Willy: Escape from Pirate's Cove" is an Adventure - Drama movie in which we watch a young girl finding a baby Orca in a lagoon close to her grandfather's amusement park. She tries to help and rescue the baby Orca.

Since I had already watched the original franchise of "Free Willy" I knew what to expect from this movie. "Free Willy: Escape from Pirate's Cove" is the new version of the movie "Free Willy" of 1993. The interpretation of Bindi Irwin who played as Kirra, it was good but not enough to save this movie. I am not saying that "Free Willy: Escape from Pirate's Cove" is a bad movie, I am just saying that it's another below average family movie and nothing more. Finally, I have also to say that if you want to watch a nice family movie with the same context then you should definitely watch the first movie of "Free Willy" of 1993.

I wasn't looking forward to watching the most recent addition to the Free Willy franchise. My choice to rent the movie was a last resort decision but fortunately I do not regret my choice. While the movie was far from a master piece and wasn't nearly as good as the first Free Willy it is still very entertaining. Once I became accustomed to the cliché family film feel of the movie I was able to enjoy the story for what it was. My biggest complaint is that the movie was very different from the other previous Free Willy films to the point where it should have been called something else. This Free Willy movie is obviously made for the younger audience, the acting is overly comedic, the bad situations are always humorously harmful and the entire movie is very predictable. The movie overall just seems much more family oriented then the first film. That is not necessarily negative, I just wasn't expecting the family style to be pushed as hard as it was. In addition to that, the protagonist Kirra took a while to warm up to. I thought Bindi Irwin was simply a poor actor at first but I eventually realized that the acting flaws seemed more like they were caused by the director constantly looking for the overly fun family film style. While the acting seemed flawed, in the end I rather liked the character.

If you enjoy family films then I believe you'll find the movie entertaining, however, if you're not accustomed to family films I suggest you avoid watching the movie, especially if your looking for a movie similar to the original Free Willy.

I was a bit alarmed at the start of this film - the acting, especially by young Bindi Irwin was not great BUT it improved a lot as the film went on and slowly I began to really like the setting, the actors and the simple story. Yes it is predictable, yes it is a bit silly at times but it is good wholesome family entertainment and quite old-fashioned in a way - which is no bad thing. My only slight criticism is the obvious computer generated undersea orcas, but this aside the film provides a lot of entertainment, some very sweet moments and a nice chemistry between Bindi Irwin and Beau Bridges. The latter, as always, is excellent and the former is quite charming at times. If you want to watch a nice easy family film then choose this one. If you don't, then this is probably not for you.

This Is The One No One Asked This Was Dumb And Stupid

If you put aside the misleading marketing of it being a sequel within the Free Willy franchise, I think it is a worthwhile and good natured piece of escapism for younger viewers.

You cannot fault themes associated with animals being better off in the wild than in captivity, plus the nice bond portrayed between a grandfather and granddaughter is a positive message.

I also like how the filmmakers use the location to good effect. You can tell it is made on low budget, but has a solid production, capturing environment and editing various shots nicely to help tell the story. You cannot get away from the distraction of animated killer whales, but it is what it is.

Beau Bridges and Bindi Irvin lead the cast well. They have a script that is cliched and full of contrivances, but it also has a simple, harmless quality that both my daughters (8 and 4 years old) found engaging.

Some movies and TV shows feel torturous to sit through as a parent, but personally this was not the case for me.

This is a nice little film that the whole family can enjoy together. It will not deliver any surprises or stun you with Academy award performances. Just a simple story requiring a suspension of disbelief and, perhaps, an open heart.

Bindi Irwin delivers a good performance and it's too bad she didn't continue to make movies as her acting ability was strong even as a child.

The plot is standard family fare - good guys win, bad guys lose and protagonists learn valuable life lessons.

The CGI whale is pretty good by 2010 standards. The robo-whale, however, is pretty dreadful and totally unconvincing.

I agree with many reviewers that the title of the film should not have included the phrase "Free Willy". This film exists in a separate universe and has no connection to the other three films whatsoever.

It's somewhat amusing to hear from the "Free Willy" purists who hold those films in such high regard. They were not the high-concept, altruistic message films these people imagine them to be. Although the production values were higher, all those films were implausible and predictable. The addition of a environmental blurb on the end credits does not raise the integrity of the film.

To those who feel this movie disrespects Keiko all I can say that the orca was exploited from the moment he was captured at about two years of age. He lived a miserable existence in concrete prisons where he was chronically ill from a variety of infections. Warner Brothers exploited him for the movies and even his disastrous release was hyped like a circus sideshow. For all its flaws, "Escape from Pirate's Cove" didn't exploit and harm a living orca.

First, I have NOT seen any one of the three previous Orca interacting-with-kid-concept films nor, did I expect to see this one. My Granddaughter had other ideas. It's a very good film. my Granddaughter and I stayed glued and time seemed to pass quickly as you get wrapped up in the simple but, familiar, yet, very entertaining plot. 11yr-old Bindi Irwin was at the making of this film in 2010, as she is today, adorable and amazing! She is a great draw and her acting seemed to get better as the film clicked along. Beu Bridges portrayed the likable, but unprincipled Grandfather who happens to own a rag-tag carnival that oft times masquerades as a not-so-sea-worthy theme park. Again simple, familiar but, pretty good stuff. And Bridges did very well with the character. Another plus is he beautiful South African countryside. Our two thumbs are up!