If you're a film lover or an animal lover, or both, you've probably seen the glowing reviews, read and listened to the interviews, or been riveted by the resulting news coverage. You're probably so on board with the Louie Psihoyos' film "The Cove," that you're ready to call your Congress member and register outrage over the outlandish acts of dolphin abuse the film documents off the coast of Taijii, Japan.
The question: Should you actually go see it? Do you want to?
First: I mean that latter question figuratively and literally -- if you live in New York City, and want to see the film with me Friday, send me a private message; I'm expecting some free passes into a private screening. First come first served!
Second: I'd love to read other members' reactions to the film, which has become serious Oscar bait. My biggest hesitation is pure squeamishness; it's supposed to be a really wonderfully told story, but I get nauseous at the site of a dead pigeon. I've been reassured that this is no PETA picture, that graphic footage is kept to a discreet minimum. But what do others who have seen the film have to say? Comment below or blog away!
And for those of you who (like me) see it over the weekend, tell us what you think! We'll collect your posts on Monday.
It seems to be playing in all major markets.
Emily Holleman
Mignon Khargie
Scott Rosenberg
Thomas Rogers
Rebecca Traister
Dan-onymous
Salon.com
Comments
All I’ve seen are pieces from my company’s competitor’s reels. And all I can say is, if I could, I’d see it every day of the week and twice on Sundays. Looks like good film-making.
If I attended, it would be a big mess that would involve sedatives, bourbon and a long night of talking me down, as if from a bad acid trip.
I will see the film and only then voice an opinion on it. But to answer your question, yes, I'll watch it and if I were near NYC I'd love to attend. Very kind offer. Good luck with it.
I'm with you, NP. But I think of violence as a pretty slippery slope, and believe people who casually disregard the lives of animals can more easily learn to mistreat their fellow bipeds. No studies to source that conviction -- I just feel it in my gut.
Dolphin abuse is not the biggest of the world's worries. But I think stories about how we learn to ignore the inhumanity right in front of us (the gist of The Cove) tell us a lot about human nature, and not just the dolphin abusers. I also think trying to identify the thing we all should worry about can lead to an endless game of, "Yeah, you think that's bad? Let me tell you about . . . " My cop brother is better at that than I am.
The word you're looking for is "grisly".
I'm pretty sure "The Cove" isn't about bears.
Again, I have no issues or debate with the story. However, I think this film could have been more effective as a 30-minute show on TV/Cable/On-Demand. In my opinion, there was too much set up for the story, too much "flipper backstory" than really needed, too many "interviews" with the director, too much "video tech" much of it never making it into the film (note the flying camera blimp). After an hour or so, you realize that the climax of the film -- the "killing scene" in the cove -- is only a few minutes, at best. A good story, a good cause, but maybe too much ego and money wasted to create a "film" instead of a clear, simple and effective message.
Okay, so it's not saving homeless beaten children or curing cancer, but it is yet another human injustice that can be stopped.
I too, was very squeamish when I saw the trailer, but someone pointed out to me all the other things in the movie, as Louis P. the Director also does: there is so much more beauty, adventure, spirit, and yes, HUMOR in this Oscar worthy pic than the brief violence that they do depict, as necessary. No, I never would have said that before. I thought I would leave the theater when that part came up, as I turn nature programs off when the animals go after each other. But this was far from that. It almost felt disrespectful to ignore. I still could barely watch, as I held my head in my hands and wept openly, and I was not the only one. When it's over, the remainder of the film is so invigorating and loaded with hope and possibilities, you cannot pass on it simply because of the one segment. There's far too much else worth seeing... and seeing on the big screen.
This is a beautiful, beautiful and hugely inspiring film.
Since dolphins are one of only six animals on the earth known to be self-aware, their slaughter should strike very close to home. They are, also, the only animals with more complex gyri/sulci (wringkles) than the human brain, an otherwise unfailing indication of level of intelligence. Dolphins are so different from us, so much more sound-oriented, that it is hard to make an accurate assessment of their intelligence at this point, but we know it is very advanced (their relatives the whales are harder to study still).
That said, I don’t know how much worse this butchery is than the wretched factory farm lives and cruel slaughter (humane slaughter laws are routinely ignored and don’t apply to all animals anyhow) of more than nine billion meat animals yearly in the US alone. I was raised on a farm, took part in the killing of many animals, but their deaths were a gentle repose compared to what the animals laid out for viewing in the meat counter endured. I would never eat dolphins. Or whales. Or, for some time now, chickens.
http://thecovemovie.com/
"I sincerely appreciate your work on The Cove. I first heard about the film a few months ago, and it has been on my "to-see" list ever since. I saw it at 5:00 this evening in the Orlando area, and it was simply incredible! Here is my story:
How ironic that my dream job back in the early 90's was to be an animal trainer at Sea World?! I used to LOVE going to Sea World to see the marine life, and I even paid to go on a behind the scenes tour many years ago. Then, I had a life changing experience in 2005 and 2006.
On a trip to Kaikoura, New Zealand in 2005, I had the opportunity to swim with non-captive, wild dolphins. They are not fed to be attracted to swimmers; they choose to interact with people with no food and no touching. INCREDIBLE!
In 2006, I went whale watching and kayaking with orcas off Vancouver Island. When I learned about the family structure of killer whales and how the young stay with mom, aunts, and grandmas FOREVER, and they swim hundreds of miles a day, I realized that any size tank is far too small for these incredible marine mammals.
I vowed I could never return to Sea World or any other marine park, or even subsidize any of their other businesses. Don't be fooled, marine parks are for PROFIT, not education, not animal care, nothing but PROFIT. If the orcas and dolphins were returned to the wild, they would bond with their original pods and return to a normal, happy life. But nothing will change as long as people continue to support animal captivity by visiting these FOR PROFIT parks and aquariums.
I am so grateful for this film, and I will tell everyone I know about it for a very long time. I look forward to the DVD release. THANK YOU!"
The few minutes of footage of the actual slaughter is very near the end of the film, and while it is upsetting, it truly is the only way people will understand how Japan is lying to the world about their kill method. Close your eyes through this very brief part if you have to, but PLEASE go see The Cove and take a friend!
Harumph. Muttering.
Harumph.
I just got back from Virginia Beach where I could see the dolphins swim not 50 feet from shore--so beautiful and graceful.
It is going to take people, people who are outraged by what they see, to come together collectively to stop the suffering.
Bottle-nosed dolphins are not an endangered species. Pigs are probably as intelligent as dolphins, and I'm sure you could make an even more gruesome film about our factory farms and mechanized slaughterhouses, so I'm not sure what to think about it.