Dolphin Tale

Dolphins are amazingly playful creatures. They possess a phenomenal learning ability, a sensitivity to touch, the pattern of forming long-term bonds with each other, and the habit of being present with hurt or dying companions. This movie directed by Charles Martin Smith is a top-drawer drama for families.

Sawyer, an 11-year-old Floridian, cut himself off from others when his father left. He finds a beached dolphin whose tail is entangled in a crab trap.

As he cuts her free, the two of them form a bond. The dolphin is taken to a marine hospital where she is named Winter.

Thanks to Hazel, the daughter of the marine biologist who runs the facility, Sawyer is allowed to play a major role in rehabilitating Winter after her tail has to be amputated. Meanwhile a doctor from a VA hospital takes on the challenge of creating a prosthetic tail for Winter using the latest technology.

This heartwarming story about the mutual healing of a lonely boy and a badly injured dolphin is a deeply spiritual experience (Warner Home Video, PG).