‘A SHOCKING DOCUMENTARY’
Starring: Ric O’Barry, Louie Psihoyos, Simon Hutchins, Mandy-Rae Cruickshank and Kirk Krack
Directed by: Louie Psihoyos
MPAA Rating: PG-13 for disturbing content.
Genre: Documentary
By John Delia
If there ever was a documentary that screamed for help, The Cove is a prime
example. Taking the task of saving Bottlenose Dolphins (also called a Porpoise) on their own, filmmaker Louis Psihoyos has made a film that is not only eye opening but amazingly emphatic. Punctuating the need for the voices of millions, Psihoyos wants to stop the killing of the dolphins by the Japanese as shown in his new film. It is a blunt film holding nothing back and actually showing the slaughter in the ‘killing cove.’
The shocking film brings the killing lagoon to the screen with some very specialized filmmaking. Putting their lives in danger and gathering what funds they could muster the filmmaker’s team participated in a covert operation, second to maybe the Navy Seals. Gathering professionals in diving, camerawork, special effects and dolphin knowledge they entered the coastal city of Taiji, Japan with the intent to show the shocking events taking place during three months of the year, the slaughter of dolphins for food and profit. What they got, they are showing the world.
Enlisting Ric O’Barry, long time advocate crusader trying to save the dolphin from human servitude, the team set out to record every gripping step in their attempt to get the footage of this abominable killing. O’Barry himself admits
to the abuse of the mammals, making years of episodes of the television show Flipper. He feels in a way responsible for their captivity in shows like Sea World and The Miami Sea Aquarium. His statement to that fact is ‘they work for food’ by entertaining people, and not for their own pleasure. He adds that the dolphins are stressed out while in captivity.
Psihoyos asked long time friend Mandy Rae-Cruickshank and her husband Kirk Krack to help on the project. Manday is a world champion ‘freediver’ so she along with her husband took on the challenge of setting the underwater cameras in the net cage lagoon in Taiji. In addition, Kirk, a wizard at Industrial Light and Magic was able to get the special effects people to make the fake rocks that housed the high definition cameras and microphones that were used in the film to gather the damning evidence of the atrocious acts.
Other members of the team included: David Rastovich, a Free Surfer, Simon Hutchins, Director of Expeditions, Scott Baker, DNA specialist, Brooke Aitken, Cinematographer, Charles Hambleton. Clandestine Operations, Joseph Chisholm, Unit Production Manager and Greg ‘Moondog’ Mooney, Marine Technician.
The purpose for capturing bottlenose dolphins by Japanese in Taiji is to choose the most desirable mammals to sell to aquariums around the world for upwards of $150,000 each. The rest of the thousands that do not meet the demand were viciously killed for their meat. And according to the film, the fishermen consider dolphins pests. In addition to bringing the killings to light, the team found that the mercury levels in the dolphins were so high that they could poison the people that were eating their meat.
FINAL ANALYSIS: A must see film that could make a difference. (5 of 5 Palm Trees)
Learn more on how you can help: www.takepart.com/thecove
(SEE THE INTERVIEW WITH RIC O’BARRY under “Interviews” in Your Entertainment Ticket)