Blackfish

BLACKFISH

Director : Gabriela Cowperthwaite

Year : 2013

Genre : Documentary

Rating : ****

When I was a child, I was taken to Orlando to visit Walt Disney World, Universal Studios and Seaworld and by far, one of the standouts for me was seeing the killer whale Shamu and stroking the various dolphins at Seaworld. I was awe inspired by these huge creatures and seeing them jump into the air and carry people on their back was absolute magic to my eyes. However, as I have grown older and became more and more environmentally conscious, I have begun to realise that keeping such giant animals in captivity is unbelievably cruel and this is the issue than the fantastic documentary 'Blackfish' focuses on. Telling the true story of a notorious orca that has killed three people over the course of two decades, the movie stands as both an indictment of animal captivity but also feels like an indictment of Seaworld. Featuring interviews with past employees and animal trainers, 'Blackfish' traces the backstory of the killer whale in question, the lives of those it murdered and the way in which both Seaworld and the American media twisted the stories for their own personal benefit. 

In 1983, Tilicum the orca was taken from his Icelandic pod and placed in a small marine park in Canada where he was harassed by other captive whales and forced to spend most of the hours of the day in a cold dark tank. This lifestyle would psychologically change the whale and he began to show signs of pent up anger and irreversible damage. Soon becoming too big for his tiny compound, Tilicum was transported to Seaworld where his aggression and viciousness would eventually result in the deaths of three trainers. Covering each death and the circumstances surrounding the horrific events through real life footage and testimonies from those who were on the premises at the time, 'Blackfish' investigates why and how each tragedy occurred and why this particular killer whale would continually turn to killing it's trainers.

The first thing to say about this documentary is that it is incredibly moving and disturbing. By using the actual footage that shows the events leading up to the deaths of each of Tilicum's victims as well as the abuse that the orca experienced before it committed these actions, 'Blackfish' becomes an incredibly potent and distressing watch that is sure to upset both animal lovers and those with a more furtive imagination. However, while the documentary never fails to lose the ideology that these animals are dangerous and should not be kept in captivity, 'Blackfish' also shows just how beautiful, graceful and intelligent these amazing animals really are. To me, one of my incredible sights in all of nature is a whale breaching out of the water and by featuring astonishing footage of orcas swimming in the ocean as well as learning their famous tricks and show stopping acrobatics in the arenas, the picture does a brilliant job of showing us both the friendly and carnivorous nature of these powerful and majestic animals.

The scenes that show the build up to the various deaths mentioned throughout the movie are extremely touching and by showing us the love that these trainers had for this killer whale just proves that this tragedies could have happened to absolutely anyone unlucky enough to get in Tilicum's way. The interviewees clearly showed passion for working at Seaworld and this film acts as a tribute to the victims of the orca and a correction to the lies that both the marine park and the media created to protect Tilicum. By twisting the truths surrounding the various deaths making it look like the trainers demises were accidents or caused by their own negligence and carelessness, Tilicum was repeatedly saved from certain death and even today, he is still performing at Seaworld to thousands upon thousands of people a year. I'm not sure how many visitors know the truth about the killer whale displaying itself before them, but I have a feeling that those who watch 'Blackfish' will certainly feel hesitation and reluctance towards him; and I personally hope so. It is not the fault of the whale in any way; at the end of the day it is a wild animal. But it is incredibly disrespectful to the memories of the deceased for Seaworld to keep Tilicum in their care.

While the movie works brilliantly as a study into the ethical implications of keeping such large animals in captivity, 'Blackfish' loses it's way when it becomes purely an indictment of the entire Seaworld franchise. There is no doubt in my mind that the marine park shouldn't keep dolphins, whales and other large aquatic mammals in such confined space and that they would be infinetly happier in the endless expanse of our oceans. But I think that people are intelligent enough that we don't need the subtext and overall message of the film rammed down our throats every two minutes. It may be nice to see Shamu and friends on holiday, but 'Blackfish' shows us that behind the merchandising, cute plush toys and snazzy looking t shirts, killer whales are cold blooded  hunters, who are capable of killing innocent people just as much as their normal natural prey like seals and walruses and no amount of kissing, petting and falsified love is ever going to change that.