Dot and the Whale
Encyclopedia
Dot and the Whale is an Australian animated film from 1986. It is based on the character Dot from the animated film Dot and the Kangaroo (1977), which in turn was based on the children's book of the same name
by Ethel Pedley
.
on a stormy sea in the 19th century, chasing "the white whale". It turns out that the scene comes from the imagination of Dot, while she is sitting with the book. She goes out to play with Nelson the dolphin
in his pool, and he teaches her how to stay underwater for long periods of time, communicate underwater as well as the history and evolution of sea creatures.
While they play together, Nelson hears the wail of a beached whale
named "Tonga" from the local coast, and jumps out of his pool, over the cliff beside, and dives into the ocean on the other side, to check what is going on, with Dot coming along. Dot walks up on land to talk with Tonga, but becomes upset as two boys, Alex and Owen, stand and throw sand on the whale. The boys say that they only want to push the whale back to the sea. Together, they try to push Tonga back to the water, but fail. They decide to gather as many kids as possible, in order to help the whale as much as they can.
While Alex and Owen start to gather help, Dot sits beside Tonga, trying to converse. Tonga explains that her family has been killed by whalers, and she is the only survivor, but has lost the will to live. Dot explains that she and others want to help Tonga, and tries to by having Tonga placed in the same pool as Nelson to let her recover. Dot then realizes that they do not have a transport facility for a whale. Meanwhile, a crooked fishmonger becomes interested in Tonga as a possible "Fish" source.
As Dot wonders what she should do, Nelson tells her about Moby Dick the sperm whale
(whom he explains actually existed, and is not just a fictional figure), and suggests Dot ask him if he could convince Tonga to return to the sea. Nelson believes that Tonga would obey Moby Dick, as he is a very wise old whale with great influence in the sea. Dot accepts, and they starts their journey to Antarctica, where Moby Dick sometimes sleeps. After a long adventure, Dot and Nelson reach Antarctica and meet the aged and wrinkly whale, but Moby Dick will not ask Tonga to return to the sea. He believes that if Tonga wishes to die, they should let her do so, instead of returning her to the sea and perhaps end up as another victim to whalers. However due to the kindness of the town's children, Tonga has renewed her desire to stay alive.
Dot returns from the sea and makes up a new plan with Alex and Owen in order to save Tonga, and let her share the pool with Nelson. They start to phone different transportation companies, to see if they could help them to move a whale, but with poor results. As they finally find a company which can help them (in return for a big sum of money), they face the problem of lacking payment. So they start a campaign to fund raise, in order to save the whale.
Unfortunately, the fishmonger decides to steal the collected gain. He succeeds, but is stopped thanks to the boss of the transport company. The following day, Tonga moves to her new home. In a short epilogue, it is explained that Tonga's health improved so much, that she eventually returned to the sea.
Dot and the Kangaroo
-Film adaptations:The book was adapted into a film in 1977 which featured a combination of animation and live-action. The main character, Dot, was voiced by Barbara Frawley. The film also featured Spike Milligan as the voice of Platypus. The movie featured an original soundtrack including several...
by Ethel Pedley
Ethel Pedley
Ethel Charlotte Pedley was an Australian author and musician.Pedley's most well-known book is Dot and the Kangaroo, which featured a little girl named Dot who becomes lost in the Australian outback, and is helped to find her way back home by a friendly kangaroo. The illustrations were drawn by...
.
Plot
The film starts of with a scene from the novel Moby Dick, with a whalerWhaler
A whaler is a specialized ship, designed for whaling, the catching and/or processing of whales. The former included the whale catcher, a steam or diesel-driven vessel with a harpoon gun mounted at its bows. The latter included such vessels as the sail or steam-driven whaleship of the 16th to early...
on a stormy sea in the 19th century, chasing "the white whale". It turns out that the scene comes from the imagination of Dot, while she is sitting with the book. She goes out to play with Nelson the dolphin
Dolphin
Dolphins are marine mammals that are closely related to whales and porpoises. There are almost forty species of dolphin in 17 genera. They vary in size from and , up to and . They are found worldwide, mostly in the shallower seas of the continental shelves, and are carnivores, mostly eating...
in his pool, and he teaches her how to stay underwater for long periods of time, communicate underwater as well as the history and evolution of sea creatures.
While they play together, Nelson hears the wail of a beached whale
Beached whale
A beached whale is a whale that has stranded itself on land, usually on a beach. Beached whales often die due to dehydration, the body collapsing under its own weight, or drowning when high tide covers the blowhole.-Species:...
named "Tonga" from the local coast, and jumps out of his pool, over the cliff beside, and dives into the ocean on the other side, to check what is going on, with Dot coming along. Dot walks up on land to talk with Tonga, but becomes upset as two boys, Alex and Owen, stand and throw sand on the whale. The boys say that they only want to push the whale back to the sea. Together, they try to push Tonga back to the water, but fail. They decide to gather as many kids as possible, in order to help the whale as much as they can.
While Alex and Owen start to gather help, Dot sits beside Tonga, trying to converse. Tonga explains that her family has been killed by whalers, and she is the only survivor, but has lost the will to live. Dot explains that she and others want to help Tonga, and tries to by having Tonga placed in the same pool as Nelson to let her recover. Dot then realizes that they do not have a transport facility for a whale. Meanwhile, a crooked fishmonger becomes interested in Tonga as a possible "Fish" source.
As Dot wonders what she should do, Nelson tells her about Moby Dick the sperm whale
Sperm Whale
The sperm whale, Physeter macrocephalus, is a marine mammal species, order Cetacea, a toothed whale having the largest brain of any animal. The name comes from the milky-white waxy substance, spermaceti, found in the animal's head. The sperm whale is the only living member of genus Physeter...
(whom he explains actually existed, and is not just a fictional figure), and suggests Dot ask him if he could convince Tonga to return to the sea. Nelson believes that Tonga would obey Moby Dick, as he is a very wise old whale with great influence in the sea. Dot accepts, and they starts their journey to Antarctica, where Moby Dick sometimes sleeps. After a long adventure, Dot and Nelson reach Antarctica and meet the aged and wrinkly whale, but Moby Dick will not ask Tonga to return to the sea. He believes that if Tonga wishes to die, they should let her do so, instead of returning her to the sea and perhaps end up as another victim to whalers. However due to the kindness of the town's children, Tonga has renewed her desire to stay alive.
Dot returns from the sea and makes up a new plan with Alex and Owen in order to save Tonga, and let her share the pool with Nelson. They start to phone different transportation companies, to see if they could help them to move a whale, but with poor results. As they finally find a company which can help them (in return for a big sum of money), they face the problem of lacking payment. So they start a campaign to fund raise, in order to save the whale.
Unfortunately, the fishmonger decides to steal the collected gain. He succeeds, but is stopped thanks to the boss of the transport company. The following day, Tonga moves to her new home. In a short epilogue, it is explained that Tonga's health improved so much, that she eventually returned to the sea.
Voices
- Robyn Moore - Dot, Tonga, Alex
- Keith Scott - Nelson, Owen, Moby Dick