Featuring:
Richard O'Barry: As Himself
Joe Chisholm: As Himself
Mandy-Rae Cruikshank: As Herself
Charles Hambleton: As Himself
Simon Hutchins: As Himself
Louis Psihoyos: As Himself
Directed By: Louie Psihoyos
Written By: Mark Monroe
Release Date: July 31, 2009
Running Time: 92 minutes
Rated PG-13 for disturbing content.
The Cove is a documentary that ends with the song "Heroes" by David Bowie during the closing credits. The lyrics say "We could be heroes, just for one day." It is a line that will stimulate and invigorate the masses to unite after having watched the carnage in The Cove. The title location can be found in Taiji, Japan, and it is tucked away behind steep hills. This is where dolphins go to die (over 23,000 every year). Director Louie Psihoyos brilliantly weaves the material into the body of a thriller, much like Man on Wire did. However, Man on Wire was simply telling a story, not trying to argue a point, so the result is different.
After The Cove was finished, I admit, I felt educated, and angry at how horrendously treated these mammals (yes mammals, not fish) were. It was the type of feeling that made me want to tell everyone about this documentary in hopes they would watch and be enlightened. Shortly after I arrived home however, I glanced at the reviews, most of which were glowing praise and four-star ratings. The IMDB message boards were not unanimous though. Many people slammed the documentary, and gave one star reviews. We all know how IMDB users tend to exaggerate, but this struck me. I wondered why.
I have heard reports on the cruelty to various animals before. Many students through school have spoken about the mistreatment of horses, and so forth. I felt bad, and wished it would stop of course, but it was difficult to feel as passionately as others. The Cove, at first, changed that. The problem is, Psihoyos and screenwriter Mark Monroe, unload a one-sided case on the audience, but they deliver this in such a masterful manner, that many will not notice, or think twice. My primary requirement for documentaries is impartiality. That in my mind is what produces the best examples of a documentary over a period of time. Werner Herzog is the king in this area. The Cove is as much a documentary as what Michael Moore gives us. Take that as you will. I like Moore's documentaries, but he manipulates the facts to his liking, and that is what happens in The Cove to a point, and that is what has bothered many people.
Regardless, when all the arguments have been slung back and forth, many of the images and interviews that remain are still undeniably captivating and simultaneously horrific. It follows Richard O'Barry, a renowned former dolphin trainer. One of the most haunting facts is that a major part of the dilemma stems from the 1964 TV series Flipper, which O'Barry worked on. His remorse at being once apart of the problem is heartwrenching. He is well known in Taiji, to a degree where he must wear a mask to disguise his identity. He has been arrested numerous times in connection with attempting to free dolphins. He is aided by Director Louie Psihoyos and a team of crew members and freedivers who set out to assist them with placing hidden cameras that will capture the bloodshed.
O'Barry describes the event which turned his life around. He was extremely close with one of the three dolphins that portrayed Flipper, named Kathy. O'Barry discusses the stress dolphins experience when they are kept for show at places like SeaWorld. The way in which the fishermen rally them in Taiji is by banging on metal. This freaks them out. Imagine what it must be like to swim in a small pool surrounded by thousands of screaming families. This causes the stress, and in Kathy's case, it meant death. O'Barry says the dolphin committed suicide, and he admits that word is extreme, but dolphins have the ability to stop breathing whenever they want. Moments like this stir the emotion of the viewer so that the scenes of violence trigger our anger. But it is effective, and the life of Richard O'Barry is a highlight of The Cove.
The documentary takes some fascinating tangents dealing with the IWC (International Whaling Commission) and their exclusion of dolphins from their list for protection. And in a scary portion, they cover the levels of mercury in dolphin meat, which is available and eaten in some areas of Japan. Apparently they wanted to integrate the meat into school lunches, and in Japan, school lunch is compulsory. They would have to eat it. Furthermore, they mention the possible collapse of the fish market in the next four decades.
The Cove reminds me of a special I saw on Fox at one time. It was all about the conspiracy theory of how we faked the moon landing. The piece unleashed a bunch of arguments supporting this, while the representative of NASA clumsily replied with "That's not true." I was enraged. I was enlightened. I was...gullible (at least at first). Psihoyos greatly limits the counter arguments in The Cove to the responses from a few doofuses, yet never supplies any other facts or data to offer both sides of the story. One of the things that had me hooked in was the intelligence of the dolphins. They compare it to human intelligence, and even say that they could be smarter. Well, yes they are smart, but they are not comparable to humans. The research on dolphin intelligence is not final yet.
I couldn't help but feel a little deceived by The Cove. Slaughtering these dolphins is certainly wrong, but how can they expect the situation to be resolved unless they present the full truth, and all of the data? For instance why not lay out the differences between killing dolphins for meat and killing cattle? The Cove is better at being a thriller than it is as a documentary. It displays people that are built as villains, action sequences, and surprising stunts.
Still, at its heart, The Cove means well, and one cannot argue with the slaughter we see right in front of us. One of the best lines that I took away from this was "The dolphin's smile is nature's greatest deception." It is a thought provoking sentence, and The Cove does as good as any documentary could at making the world feel for these dolphins. Unfortunately, the message becomes a bit shaky with more research, and it will only cause the reputation of The Cove to diminish in the long run. It should also tell us something else: That the Paul Hogan and Elijah Wood Flipper remake was a crime against humanity.
The 411: Will I urge people to see this? Initially, I would have replied definitely yes, but now it is hard to be as confident due to the manipulative nature of the documentary. The Cove presents a devastating account of dolphin slaughter, those who profit from it, and those who aim to prevent it. It is wrong in so many ways, and worth knowing about. The problem is viewers only receive one side of the story, and that can make this tough to recommend. What I have learned? Well, I will certainly think twice about paying for any dolphin show from now on. This is ripe for Oscar nominations, so be on the look out for it on DVD because I think the theatrical release is coming to a close.
