Being a casual sailor I did enjoy the mechanics of this movie. It motivated me to want to spend more time on the water and push the limits of my own sailing. The camera work was impressive and the plot kept me interested for the most part as it provided a good balance between the sport and the interpersonal aspect of the team. I enjoyed seeing the process of training and then competing in the race as well as examining the strategic decision making process and the results of those decisions.Now, don't take the next part wrong, I did like the characters in the movie and for the most part they seemed like enjoyable and personable people. What threw me off though is that the crew consisted of what mostly appeared to be privileged kids that grew up sailing, at least half of which probably could have bought their way onto a TransPac boat if they really wanted to. Not that this isn't what I would expect in your typical high-caliber sailboat racing, since you do enter a race to win and you want an experienced crew. However, in this case it would have been nice to see more diversity and a mix of the experienced sailors sharing this experience with motivated, yet underprivileged kids. The one person who I think the experience would have had the most profound impact on didn't make the final cut. Another person who disregarded a suggestion to not go snowboarding between training sessions ended up breaking her arm and missing much of the training, but still did make it on the boat. Sure, there was probably a lot more that happened behind the scenes so I may not have the full picture, but that seems pretty representative of the inequities that many people face on a day-to-day basis and I think the film could have aimed a bit higher. I think it would have been a much better and motivating movie if it had more of a "breaking down the social and economic barriers" aspect to it, rather than just a bunch of experienced young sailors taking their sailing to the next level.To sum up, taking the age of the crew out of the equation, this was simply a documentary about putting an elite sailing team together to compete in an exclusive sailboat race. The fact that they were all in their late teens/early twenties (and probably in the best physical shape they will ever be in) wasn't a big deal to me. If you are intrigued by sailing and sailboat racing I would recommend this movie. If you are looking for a motivational feel-good movie, you may be a bit disappointed. Just my opinion of course.

Since 1906, boaters from all corners of the globe have gathered to compete in the Transpacific Yacht Race, a two-week-long sailing competition that extends across more than 2,000 miles of open ocean, starting in Los Angeles and ending in Honolulu. In 2007, Roy Disney and a team of expert trainers sponsored a hand-picked crew of young sailors - ages 18 to 23 - to compete in the event (indeed, it was the youngest team in the history of the race). Named after the 52-foot boat on which they sailed, "Morning Light" is a documentary account of both the preparation for that race and the race itself.The movie spends much of the first half focusing on the grueling training the youngsters underwent as part of the process of whittling down the group of 15 hopefuls to a final crew of just 11.Directed by Mark Monroe, "Morning Light" is a wholesome, upbeat, fast-paced documentary with razor-sharp editing (by Monroe and Paul Crowder) that really gets the adrenaline pumping, and cinematography (by Josef Nalevansky) that truly makes you feel like you're a part of the action. Through interviews, we get to know a little about the youngsters themselves, what motivates them, what excites them about sailing, and what it means to them personally to make - and, indeed in some cases, to not make - the final cut.With its inspirational, shoot-for-the-stars pop-rock soundtrack, MTV-style editing techniques and "Real World" communal setup (albeit a squeaky-clean one), the movie is clearly aimed at a younger audience. And there are times when the film does feel a little too "Disneyfied" for its own good (did none of these young adults ever once swear?). But folks of any age will be able to thrill to this film, provided they have a spirit of adventure - armchair variety or not.

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. It is a documentary movie about a group of young sailors who are brought together by a most benevolent and charitable Roy Disney, his beautiful and creative wife and their crack squad of sailing coaches. Ultimately, thirty elite sailors have to be pared down to the fourteen who will race the boat "Morning Light" in the difficult Transpac Ocean Race. The photography is gorgeous. The reasons the coaches give for choosing the lucky sailors who eventually take part in this challenging endeavour are as interesting as the hurdles which befell the young sailors along their journey such as safety, night sailing, mechanical repair and sheer endurance. This movie is a delight and is real life as opposed to a hokey drama. Well done!

What happens if you put fifteen young, good looking adults in the same place, and make them compete to join a team that will participate in one of the most elite races in sailing? As it turns out, nothing but sailing in the documentary Morning Light.Roy Disney wanted to get young sailors in the TransPac race so he bought the Morning Light, and set off to get the best to man it. Fifteen mostly obscenely rich, mostly white, all good looking, young sailors, Chris Branning, Grahm Brant-Zawadzki, Chris Clark, Charlie Enright, Jesse Fielding, Robbie Kane, Steve Manson Chris Schubert, Kate Theisen, Mark Towill, Genny Tulloch, Pieter van Os, Chris Welsh, Kit Will and Jeremy Wilmont are chosen to vie for eleven spots on the Morning Light. They go sailing, talk about sailing and look at sail boats.A reasonable person would venture a guess that a bunch of young virile men in a competitive situation trapped in a small space with a couple of women might bring some sexual tension. It would be expected that directly competing to participate in one of the most elite races in sailing, the TransPac, would cause outbursts or the occasional jockeying for attention or recognition. The powerful part of competitive reality TV…er movies… is the strong emotional connection between the people on the screen.Watching Morning Light is like trying to swim on a slip and slide. While it is wet and you can move across it swiftly on your stomach, you can't drown in the story because the water is only there to lube you up. Nothing that would make the audience submerge into the depths of the people or circumstances even grace the screen.Morning Light has the emotional depth of a sociopath. We might as well be watching, "How to sail: A Step by Step Guide for the Rich and Moronic," because it offers equal levels of emotional expressiveness. They did not make me wonder or care about who would be selected to make the team, if they won the race or how they got along. Instead of asking myself questions of wonder during the movie, I often asked myself, "Who cares?" On the plus side, I do know far more about sailing than I ever did before, maybe enough to encourage me to buy a sail boat – if I could afford one. Until then, I hope Disney leaves Morning Light out at sea.