By Chlotrudis Independent Film Society
Rating: 3.75 cats
Director: Louie Psihoyos
Country: united_states
Year: 2009
Running time: 92
IMDB: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1313104/
Michael says: “Structured like a caper film of international espionage, THE COVE is actually a shocking documentary about a tiny Japanese fishing village that traffics dolphins to the hundreds of sea parks across the world, then slaughters the remaining to sell for food in Japan. Structured like a suspense narrative, the film is a remarkable piece of investigative journalism that revolves around Richard O’Barry, an internationally recognized authority on dolphin training who is best known for his work on the 1960’s TV show Flipper. After his work training dolphins for Sea World and other similar parks, he became an animal activist, struggling to free dolphins from the captivity they face as park performers. After learning about the village in Japan, he puts together a covert team of divers with the sole purpose of filming the slaughter of dolphins in order to expose this barbaric practice to the world. Director Louie Psihoyos combines some breathtaking footage of the dolphins, and creates a compelling, albeit horrifying documentary that is sure to anger many. 4 ½ cats”
Beth Caldwell says: “Similar to many activist documentaries, the film maker makes a case against dolphin hunting and raising dolphins in captivity. I appreciate the effort that went into making this film, using divers to sneak in in the middle of the night to install cameras to capture the slaughter. A little too emotional in many areas, but overall good work. 4 cats.”
Toni says: “The biggest problem that I have with what I consider to be mainstream documentaries is a group of different people talking about an issue and what is means to then and taking to long for the story to develop or moving slowly in the middle of a documentary. There were some touching pieces like the scary people working in the Japanese government organizations, the ceremonies of surfers, the threat of mercury and the forcing of dolphin meat in children’s diets in Japan, each could make for a strong story. Then the film gets bogged down on talking about dolphins and technical talk on how to film them that is edited out would make for a more tight film. The archival footage mercury poisoning, the scene about the death of flipper, the scenes of the blood soaked water, and the final battle of crashing the IWC convention with the camera, crew, and video are all great. However, there is a bit too much filler to completely keep your interest mainly because of the slow midway part where you are wondering ‘where are they going with this?’ I would recommend seeing the film for the issues; however, it definitely had some flaws. 3 1/2 cats
“P.S. I give the 20 minute bonus documentary on the DVD, THE COVE: MERCURY RISING, 5 cats. It is much more focused, less babble, while still being powerful and emotional. I would like to see this made into a feature length documentary. From the mercury in the tuna people eat and its long term health effects to lack of further studies being done on the effects of mercury used in numerous vaccinations on our children (from 3 vaccinations in the 1960s and 1970s to 22 after 1989), there is information out there I would like learn more about; maybe there will be The COVE II and it will be voted a top sequel for this society”
Diane says: “Forgive me! I don’t know why I should stop the slaughter of dolphins in Taiji. Is it because dolphins are intelligent? Because the means of killing them isn’t humane? Because eating them is dangerous to our health? Well, any of those opens up a whole can of worms for those of us who eat meat and contribute to mercury emissions by using electricity made from coal-fired power plants. Oy!
“Aside from these ethical questions that paralyze me, I had the flip side of Toni’s response to this docu. I thought the THE COVE was well edited for suspense. But by the end, I found a big gap between the build-up and the finale. ***SPOILER-ish*** When activist O’Barry (originally a dolphin trainer) gets the footage he wants, he walks through a major meeting wearing a video screen. The attendees avert their eyes. Everyone–even the ‘good guys’–consider O’Barry to be a crank. Why should I think elsewise?
“My favorite quote: ‘Dolphins are swimming toxic dump sites.’ And one thing to be thankful for: mercury levels are more likely to afflict the more affluent in the U.S. who consume big fish. For once, the less affluent don’t have more than their share of the health problems.
“As you can see, I became quite engaged with the issue. 3 cats.”