The Cove (2009)

Directed by: Louie Psihoyos | 87 minutes | documentary | Starring: Joe Chisholm, Mandy-Rae Cruikshank, Charles Hambleton, Simon Hutchins, Kirk Krack, Isabel Lucas, Richard O’Barry, Hayden Panettiere, Roger Payne, John Potter, Louie Psihoyos, Dave Rastovich, Paul Watson

Beautifully made documentary that is an outright indictment of dolphin hunting in the Japanese city of Taiji and the Japanese government’s fisheries policy. Activist Ric O’Barry and director Louie Psihoyos team up to investigate the evil practices that take place in Japan. Being in the middle of the action gives the viewer the feeling that you are there as the creators do their clandestine and dangerous work. Because of this ‘The Cove’ sometimes resembles a thriller. Especially if conversations are recorded with hidden cameras or scenes with green “night vision” are filmed. It soon becomes clear that the work is not without danger, when it turns out that some of the makers’ colleagues have been murdered for their meddling in the dolphin trade. That is why an extensive undercover operation is being launched, including hidden cameras in fake rocks to still be able to shoot their material.

Director Psihoyos was a celebrated National Geographic Society photographer who became increasingly concerned with the sometimes cruel fate of underwater animals. In 2005 he founded the Oceanic Preservation Society to better protect the sea and its inhabitants and to make people aware of what is happening. The grey-haired Psihoyos is also one of the most important interviewees. Although many speakers take the floor, Richard ‘Ric’ O’Barry’s story is the most impressive. He was once the most famous dolphin trainer in the world thanks to the television series “Flipper” (can also be seen on archive footage) that he collaborated on. Through a friend Jim Clark they show how bad the situation is with the dolphins that are supposedly honored in the National Park in Taiji – along with the whale. Officially, the dolphins that are caught are sold to amusement parks and “swim with dolphins” projects around the world. Every dolphin sold brings in $150,000. But far more shocking things are happening beneath the surface.

The English word “cove” literally means small cove or creek. The cove in question is a bay off Taiji. Thousands of dolphins are lured there every year by sonar sounds and horribly slaughtered. The images this produces are terrible to see: the spears disappearing into the water, the floundering fins, the red-colored sea, the bringing in of the dead animals, it is difficult to see. Still, it’s good that Psihoyos, O’Barry and their crew show this: it’s the only way to put pressure on Japan, through public opinion. This is evident from the registration of meetings of the International Whaling Commission and interviews with delegates from many different countries. Perhaps most serious of all, the dolphin meat is sold as whale meat – and to make matters worse, the dolphin meat also contains far too high a level of mercury, which can pose a public health hazard.

‘The Cove’ flawlessly combines beautiful underwater images of the so cheerful looking mammals, with history lessons, scientific research, interviews, archive material and the secret recordings into an intriguing whole that impresses and almost boils the blood for so much injustice against the poor. animals that fall victim to it. While the suffering of the dolphins should absolutely not be trivialized and the sincerity and good intentions of the makers in question should not be called into question, one critical note: the film is also clearly set up to arouse that outrage and the makers deftly manipulate the feelings of the dolphins. spectator. In the course of 2009, ‘The Cove’ took off at the international film festivals, where the film was showered with prize after prize: often it was the audience award, including at the Hot Docs Film Festival of Canada, the Sydney Film Festival in Australia and in the United States at the festivals of Newport Beach, Nantucket and the prestigious Sundance Festival. In addition, the Golden Space Needle Award was won in Seattle, the award for best documentary in Galway, Ireland and Brooke Aitken won the award for cinematography in Woods Hole, Massachusetts. And if the arms of director Louie Psihoyos were not already overloaded with prizes, he also received the prize for “Best Storytelling” for a documentary in Nantucket. And to top it off, the film also landed the most sought-after nomination of them all: an Oscar nomination for best documentary. These awards and nominations are a recognition of the talent of the makers to portray a sensitive subject with integrity and with great involvement. A documentary that everyone should see.