"The Cove"

(I am going to try my best to give my opinion without spoiling the story and plot of the film for all of you who may be interested in seeing this film).


Quote from the Film: "The dolphin's permanent smile hides its true feelings."


The Cove is one of the most powerful documentaries I've seen.  The production quality of this project was excellent (Yes, I have taken into consideration the seemingly enormous budget they had for this undertaking), but more importantly the rhythm of the story telling. Any good filmmaker will tell you that it starts with the story.  It doesn't matter if you have millions of dollars at your disposal; if you cannot tell a story properly, it's all a waste of time.  


The most important thing The Cove achieves is awareness and this is the beauty of documentaries - they say it as one of the opening lines "I do want to say we tried to do this story legally..." The documentary is really about the clandestine methods this team used to expose the atrocities that occur in the small town of Taijin in Japan; the filmmaker Louie Psihoyos really spared no expense.


This documentary is straight out of an espionage movie, complete with underwater cameras, camouflaged devices and a team with important skill sets from free-divers to a moldmaker from the famous Industrial Light and Magic studio.


The documentary is beautifully paced.  The overarching story is never lost but they make sure to bring in subplots, specifically Ric O'Barry's significance to the history of the popularization of dolphins and mercury poisoning.  


Here is a trailer for the film:


 


And here is a commercial I really enjoy. It is a Japanese commercial and I thought of it right away when I watched this film.