“The Cove” DVD, Blu-Ray Review

“The Cove”

DVD, Blu-Ray Review

Directed by Louie Psihoyos, Written by Mark Monroe, 92 minutes, Rated PG-13.

By our guest blogger, Matthew Schimkowtiz

In the documentary “The Cove,” aquatic-life activist Richard O’Barry continues his longtime crusade to expose the world of dolphin poaching and the trade’s immediate effects on our world.

The multi-million dollar industry, based primarily out of the small fishing town of Taiji, Japan, moves along without inspection, murdering thousands of dolphins every year and imprisoning thousands of others. “The Cove”’s argument is simple: Dolphins are sentient beings and to treat them this way is morally wrong. The film lays out its points of contention carefully and convincingly, making the truth even harder to stomach.

In the small city of Taiji, dolphin poaching is the main source of revenue. As the camera crew enters the city, decorations memorializing dolphins greet us. This is nothing more than a front. At a small inlet off the coast of the city, O’Barry explains that Taiji is the center of the largest dolphin slaughter in the world.

O’Barry began working with dolphins in the 1960s, discovering the world’s most famous porpoise, Flipper. After working with these creatures for so long, O’Barry realized that these were self aware beings, with an understanding of life and death, just like humans. Shortly thereafter, he began championing for their release from captivity.

The documentary lays out the argument clearly, and O’Barry provides examples to make it succinct and persuasive. Dolphins look in the mirror and recognize themselves. They feel depression and joy, and to hunt and imprison them is no different from hunting humans.

Gaining access to the cove drives the argument forward. It gives the narrative a center at which to focus, and from there, it can branch out to other points. O’Barry reasons that it is morally wrong to do this, explains the massive government cover-up to protect it, and that to stop it, they must gather video footage of the cove.

“The Cove” is an important, well-crafted and down-right scary film. Psihoyos makes a strong argument for why the dolphin slaughter is wrong, but the final point requires no words. The footage they take from the cove will leave you speechless.

One can hope that the film’s rock-solid argument is enough to put an end to this tragedy, but apparently, dolphins have a greater sense of compassion than humans do.

Grade: A