AllMovie

Bindi Irwin (daughter of late Crocodile Hunter star Steve Irwin) makes her feature film debut in this heartwarming tale of a little girl who befriends a stranded baby orca. Nature-loving Australian Kirra (Irwin) is spending the summer with her grandfather (Beau Bridges) in South Africa when she makes a remarkable discovery. Swimming in a small lagoon next to her grandfather's dilapidated ocean-side amusement park is a baby orca that seems to have lost its way. Determined to help her new friend get back to his pod, Kirra names the orca Willy and makes it her mission to reunite him with his family. Meanwhile, her grandfather's nemesis - the owner of a popular theme park - has his own plans for Willy. Should Kirra fail to get the wandering killer whale back in the ocean quickly, he'll be put on display instead of set free. But Kirra isn't about to let her new friend down, and before this trip is over she'll truly understand what it means to fight with all you've got for what you really believe in.