Visit our sister site:
Follow us on
Front Page, Industry News
A deeper look into The Cove
Monday March 22nd 2010TO411 documentary review
by staff writer Daisy Maclean
“A small group of thoughtful people could change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” This is the quote used by first time director and now, Oscar award winner, Louie Psihoyos, in a thank you video posted on the web site for the documentary, The Cove. It is also the best way to sum up the film, at once both a statement of what they have achieved and a challenge for others to do the same. This is no coincidence.
The quote is as meticulously well chosen as every other aspect of the documentary, from b-roll to soundtrack, chronicling the efforts of a small group of top-notch specialists, as they work to expose the dolphin drives that take place every year in a secret cove located in Taiji, Japan. These drives transpire to capture live dolphins for marine parks and aquariums, but it’s what happens to the ones not picked, that has, until now, remained a closely guarded secret.
Leading the team is activist, Richard O’Barry, the very man who stole five dolphins from the wild in order to turn them into the star of the once famous TV show, Flipper. Severely affected by the death of the dolphins he captured, O’Barry has dedicated his life to freeing captive dolphins. “I spent ten years building that industry up and I’ve spent the last 35 years trying to tear it down.”
Remember that horrible feeling you experienced as a child when your first pet died? That awful realization that there is incredible injustice in the world and you just want to shout, “but why?!” That is the emotional position of The Cove.
Environmentalism is one of the most powerful political ideals today, and one that has drawn the focus of Hollywood a lot in the last decade. What sets The Cove apart, however, is its story structure. This is a documentary whose subject is, essentially, itself. How the team was put together and what they had to go through to get the footage that could change everything gives us a perspective not often available outside making-of featurettes. Skillfully edited together by Geoffrey Richman, the espionage activities of the team takes us on an emotional and intense journey that leaves us at the end with an unsatisfied feeling.
On purpose.
The ending of the film is almost anti-climactic compared to the adrenaline ride we’ve been taken on, but therein lies the point: there is still work to be done, this is not over. The Cove is a call to action. A call to arms. It is a chance for us to cease standing helplessly by asking “why” and answer with “no more.”
Daisy Maclean will review recently completed documentaries for TO411 Daily – please contact her
for more information: daisy@to411.com.
Front Page, Industry News
A deeper look into The Cove
Monday March 22nd 2010TO411 documentary review
by staff writer Daisy Maclean
“A small group of thoughtful people could change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” This is the quote used by first time director and now, Oscar award winner, Louie Psihoyos, in a thank you video posted on the web site for the documentary, The Cove. It is also the best way to sum up the film, at once both a statement of what they have achieved and a challenge for others to do the same. This is no coincidence.
The quote is as meticulously well chosen as every other aspect of the documentary, from b-roll to soundtrack, chronicling the efforts of a small group of top-notch specialists, as they work to expose the dolphin drives that take place every year in a secret cove located in Taiji, Japan. These drives transpire to capture live dolphins for marine parks and aquariums, but it’s what happens to the ones not picked, that has, until now, remained a closely guarded secret.
Leading the team is activist, Richard O’Barry, the very man who stole five dolphins from the wild in order to turn them into the star of the once famous TV show, Flipper. Severely affected by the death of the dolphins he captured, O’Barry has dedicated his life to freeing captive dolphins. “I spent ten years building that industry up and I’ve spent the last 35 years trying to tear it down.”
Remember that horrible feeling you experienced as a child when your first pet died? That awful realization that there is incredible injustice in the world and you just want to shout, “but why?!” That is the emotional position of The Cove.
Environmentalism is one of the most powerful political ideals today, and one that has drawn the focus of Hollywood a lot in the last decade. What sets The Cove apart, however, is its story structure. This is a documentary whose subject is, essentially, itself. How the team was put together and what they had to go through to get the footage that could change everything gives us a perspective not often available outside making-of featurettes. Skillfully edited together by Geoffrey Richman, the espionage activities of the team takes us on an emotional and intense journey that leaves us at the end with an unsatisfied feeling.
On purpose.
The ending of the film is almost anti-climactic compared to the adrenaline ride we’ve been taken on, but therein lies the point: there is still work to be done, this is not over. The Cove is a call to action. A call to arms. It is a chance for us to cease standing helplessly by asking “why” and answer with “no more.”
Daisy Maclean will review recently completed documentaries for TO411 Daily – please contact her
for more information: daisy@to411.com.
Leave a Reply
Front Page, Industry News
A deeper look into The Cove
Monday March 22nd 2010TO411 documentary review
by staff writer Daisy Maclean
“A small group of thoughtful people could change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” This is the quote used by first time director and now, Oscar award winner, Louie Psihoyos, in a thank you video posted on the web site for the documentary, The Cove. It is also the best way to sum up the film, at once both a statement of what they have achieved and a challenge for others to do the same. This is no coincidence.
The quote is as meticulously well chosen as every other aspect of the documentary, from b-roll to soundtrack, chronicling the efforts of a small group of top-notch specialists, as they work to expose the dolphin drives that take place every year in a secret cove located in Taiji, Japan. These drives transpire to capture live dolphins for marine parks and aquariums, but it’s what happens to the ones not picked, that has, until now, remained a closely guarded secret.
Leading the team is activist, Richard O’Barry, the very man who stole five dolphins from the wild in order to turn them into the star of the once famous TV show, Flipper. Severely affected by the death of the dolphins he captured, O’Barry has dedicated his life to freeing captive dolphins. “I spent ten years building that industry up and I’ve spent the last 35 years trying to tear it down.”
Remember that horrible feeling you experienced as a child when your first pet died? That awful realization that there is incredible injustice in the world and you just want to shout, “but why?!” That is the emotional position of The Cove.
Environmentalism is one of the most powerful political ideals today, and one that has drawn the focus of Hollywood a lot in the last decade. What sets The Cove apart, however, is its story structure. This is a documentary whose subject is, essentially, itself. How the team was put together and what they had to go through to get the footage that could change everything gives us a perspective not often available outside making-of featurettes. Skillfully edited together by Geoffrey Richman, the espionage activities of the team takes us on an emotional and intense journey that leaves us at the end with an unsatisfied feeling.
On purpose.
The ending of the film is almost anti-climactic compared to the adrenaline ride we’ve been taken on, but therein lies the point: there is still work to be done, this is not over. The Cove is a call to action. A call to arms. It is a chance for us to cease standing helplessly by asking “why” and answer with “no more.”
Daisy Maclean will review recently completed documentaries for TO411 Daily – please contact her
for more information: daisy@to411.com.
Leave a Reply
Advertisements
