Big Miracle (2012)

This is an okay movie based on a true story. Three California gray whales, trapped in a hole in the ice of the Arctic Circle, are discovered by television news reporter Adam Carlson. Their plight is publicized after he does a feature on them, which he hopes might be his opportunity to move up to a larger TV market. His news story draws international attention and sets into motion a massive effort to free the whales from the ice. Drawn into the collaborative rescue work are several normally hostile factions: Inupiat whale hunters, a Greenpeace environmental activist (Drew Barrymore), and an oil executive.

The film is based on the 1989 book Freeing the Whales written by Tom Rose. The international effort to free the whales was known as Operation Breakthrough and cost $1 million.