“Driving into the town of Taiji [Japan] is like driving into the twilight zone,”   says Ric O’Barry, disguised in a hat, dark glasses and a filter mask.  Ric and  his passenger are driving into the town. “A little town with a big secret,” Rick continues, “when you look around you would think they loved dolphins and whales.” His passenger is Louie Psihoyos, Co-founder, Oceanic Preservation Society and the director of THE COVE – 2009 – 96 minutes – Winner Academy Award Best Feature Documentary 2009.  Directed by Louie Psihoyos – Oceanic Preservation Society, Lionsgate Distributor, Music J Ralph.

The town of Taiji resembles a resort town, with whales and dolphins as its theme. A whale and dolphin museum, performances, rides in boats shaped like dolphins and statues celebrating these aquatic mammals. But you have to wonders if there is more here than meets the eye? Especially while browsing though the museum shop, where dolphin meat is sold. Watch the dolphins perform and then eat them!

The Cove is a documentary with an activist point-of-view. The filmmakers set out to discover what happens to dolphins captured by the fisherman of Taiji, Japan. One of the main proponents for dolphins is Ric O’Barry, once the costar, with Flipper the dolphin, of Flipper, the television show that basically started the worlds preoccupation with performing dolphins. There is some archival footage of the show used in the documentary. When the show ended Ric became interested in how these creatures, who he discovered have “self recognition,” were being treated in captivity. Ric became an activist after one of the dolphins that played Flipper died suddenly. He has since gone to many different countries setting dolphins free or bringing them back to the wild.

The documentary looks at the many aspects of human and dolphin interaction over the centuries. It becomes clear that these marine mammals have a culture of their own. They communicate and use sound in more sophisticated ways than any sonar system man has invented. The scenes of dolphins riding the waves with surfers and the stories told by surfers of their interaction with dolphins are amazing. The film makes a strong case for humane treatment of dolphins and whales. Japan has steadfastly refused to stop hunting whales and dolphins.

In the documentary you learn that every year, from September to March, thousands of dolphins are herded in to the shore in Taiji where the best ones are sold to Sea World and other attraction operators for as much as $150,000 each. Taiji is the largest supplier of dolphins to marine parks and swim with dolphin programs around the world. The fisherman in Taiji herd the dolphins into the beach as they migrate in open water. Using long pipes, that they bang on, the fisherman create a wall of sound that scares the dolphins toward the shore.

The secret about Taiji revealed is that dolphins who don’t make the cut are slaughtered and sold for food, even though they have a very high concentration of Mercury and are not fit for consumption.   Selling the meat in one town in Japan caused serious birth defects and other problems for children. An estimated 23,000 dolphins are killed in Japan each year.

The capture and sale of dolphins to trainers is done in plain site. But the slaughter is done in a hidden cove where the filmmakers were not allowed to film. The filmmakers were aware in advance that they would not be permitted to shoot. Louie Psihoyos and the production crew had a number of special cameras and camera housings made beforehand so that they could go undercover to shoot certain scenes needed for the documentary.

Part of the story covers the filmmaker’s preparation and execution of the their plan to film what goes on in the hidden cove. This meant using covert methods to loose their police tail and  to deploy hidden cameras in the areas they wanted to film. The hidden cameras worked well and revealed the absolutely brutal mass killing of the dolphins in the bloody water of the cove.

Among the high tech cameras used were thermal imaging cameras, and night vision cameras. Some cameras were hidden in housings made for them by Industrial Light and Magic. These included the “Nest Cam, The Rock Cam and The Blood Cam, an underwater housing. In addition a model helicopter outfitted with a camera was used with a remote control to fly over the cove. The documentary opening titles use some of the thermal imaging camera scenes.

From the time they arrive the filmmakers and Ric O’Barry are followed and questioned by Japanese government security. Part of the documentary shows the crew setting up the various hidden cameras while government security is nearby searching for them.

This documentary is both an activist and nature documentary produced by advocates with the specific goal of bringing to light what they believe is the inhumane treatment of mammals who are being brutally slaughtered and as Ric OBarry claims, “enslaved.” Its point-of-view is clear and the footage does not lie. It shows as fact what the filmmakers claim is happening. In addition there are interviews with Japanese officials and footage from meeting of the International Whaling Commission annual meeting, where Japan dominates proceedings by basically bribing other countries into supporting their whaling and dolphin industry. In one scene the Japanese representative claims the dolphins are pests that eat fish the Japanese need for food. He also claims that the dolphins instantly with no pain.

The Cove is a well-made advocacy documentary  that uses investigative techniques to expose cruelty and unnecessary slaughter of marine life. It is difficult to watch at times because of the treatment of the dolphins, but it makes the viewer aware, perhaps painfully aware, of the problem.

JRMartin

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