‘True Spirit’: 16-year-old Jessica Watson Sails the World, Alone

Jessica’s sailboat “Pink” encounters high waves as she sails around the world, in “True Spirit.” (Netflix)

PG | 1h 49min | Drama, Biopic | 2023

Writer-director Sarah Spillane’s biopic draws on the real-life triumph of young Australian sailor Jessica Watson. At the age of 16, after a fun, and frequently frightful, eight-month long journey in 2009–10, she became the youngest person to circumnavigate the world, alone in her tiny sailboat, nonstop, and without docking at any port. Naturally, there are no spoilers in this review.

World-record purists remain divided over whether Jessica met every criteria to qualify as the youngest to achieve what she did. Still, her ambition, hard work, resilience, and belief in herself won widespread admiration and is considered an inspiration to young people.

Jessica Watson (Teagan Croft) along her journey, in “True Spirit.” (Netflix)

In the film, Jessica (Teagan Croft) one of four children in the boisterous Watson family, is the only child dedicated to sailing. It wasn’t that her parents Julie (Anna Paquin) and Roger (Josh Lawson) didn’t encourage their other children to fall in love with the ocean, too. But Jessica stayed in love, unlike her older sister Emily, younger brother Stacy, and kid sister Vivien. Her voiceover gushes, “By the time I was 12, I was obsessed.”

(L–R) Roger (Josh Lawson) and Julie (Anna Paquin) Watson, support their daughter Jessica (Teagan Croft), in “True Spirit.” (Netflix)

Before She Goes

Jessica isn’t content with passion alone. Over the next four years she learns to sail. Guided by her advisor Ben Byrant (Cliff Curtis), Jessica readies herself and her satellite phone-equipped sailboat, “Pink,” to beat a world record. As a pre-teen, her mother had read to her from Jesse Martin’s book about his becoming the youngest person, in 1999, to solo-circumnavigate in a sailboat. Now she dreams of being at sea, the wind in her hair, and sailing.

Ben Byrant (Cliff Curtis) guides Jessica Watson (Teagan Croft) in her quest, in “True Spirit.” (Netflix)

Then, waves of resistance from doubters rise onshore before Jessica confronts skyscraper-sized waves offshore. Mentally fierce but physically fragile, and finally out at sea, she faces more than angry waves: a leaky and bruised boat, an indifferent wind that stops or slows her down, isolation, seven knockdowns, and storms that dunk her boat 15 feet underwater.

Ms. Spillane’s opening scene acts as a disclaimer of sorts. A hill-sized cargo ship bruises Jessica’s sailboat at night during a pre-voyage test run; she fell asleep, forgetting to activate the boat’s alert system, only narrowly missing a collision that would’ve meant serious injury or death. Ms. Spillane plays devil’s advocate, warning audiences that Jessica is young, out to have fun, and sometimes in over her head. She closes the film with edited footage of how Jessica stayed true to the spirit of her journey.

This film differs from films showing someone lost at sea. Jessica isn’t lost. She chooses to sail alone.

The pretty Ms. Croft is endearingly vulnerable and willful here. She balances self-doubt with sheer exuberance at her hard-won sailing skills. She makes both come alive as Jessica, recording herself at various points on the boat for her video-blog. Her voiceover fills visual blanks in storytelling, including through flashbacks of her childhood struggles with dyslexia. Ms. Croft was a 5-year-old when the real-life Jessica set sail, but age 19 when she played a 16-year-old Jessica on screen.

Stunning Cinematography

Cinematographer Danny Ruhlmann and Ms. Spillane pull off dreamy, spectacular sequences of Jessica, her boat, and the ocean, with a bewildering array of day and night camera shots and angles. Sometimes the water, reflecting a starry night sky, looks like it’s right out of a painting: as if someone has strewn pearls on a black carpet. At other times its wall of foam is horrifyingly real.

Ms. Spillane’s portrayal of the family is usually convincing. They close ranks when they sense an attack on Jessica from outsiders; naysayers, or a hostile and nosy media. Privately, they’re argumentative, even skeptical about whether their petite girl is up to dealing with mighty ocean currents.

Jessica (Teagan Croft) faces stormy weather, in “True Spirit.” (Netflix)

Occasionally, the choreography of scenes of the family and their face-offs with the media is a tad awkward. Some characterizations and arcs are too neat or sudden. But the film’s heart is in the right place. Watch for Vivien Turner, who plays Jessica’s little sister. Her chubby face, mischievous smile, twinkling eyes, and gift of gab, steal every scene she’s in.

Ms. Spillane’s Jessica is clear that you don’t need to be someone special or gifted to be able to succeed. You do need a dream, the resolve to follow it, and tons of patience and hard work. In one of the most stirring moments, Jessica’s alone on her boat, weeping into her video camera, telling fans worldwide who are expectantly watching her blog posts, “Living your dream is hard. … I’ve been crying for hours. I’m tired. I’m sore … I miss my family … I’m not always fine, or strong, or fearless. I’m often terrified. … I think a lot about giving up.”

You can watch “True Spirit” on Netflix. 

‘True Spirit’ Director: Sarah Spillane Starring: Teagan Croft, Anna Paquin, Cliff Curtis MPAA Rating: PG Running Time: 1 hour, 49 minutes Release Date: Feb. 3, 2023 Rated: 3 stars out of 5

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