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Blackfish (film)

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Blackfish
Black and white picture of an orca (killer-whale) with the title Blackfish and credits underneath
Theatrical release poster
Directed byGabriela Cowperthwaite
Written byGabriela Cowperthwaite
Eli Despres
Tim Zimmermann
Produced byManuel V. Oteyza
Gabriela Cowperthwaite
CinematographyJonathan Ingalls
Christopher Towey
Edited byEli Despres
Music byJeff Beal
Production
companies
CNN Films
Manny O. Productions
Distributed byMagnolia Pictures
Release dates
Running time
83 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Box office$1,192,256[1]

Blackfish is a 2013 documentary film directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite. The film premiered at the Sundance Film Festival on January 19, 2013, and was picked up by Magnolia Pictures for wider release.[2]

Blackfish focuses on the orca Tilikum and dangers of keeping the species in captivity.[3]

Plot

The documentary focuses on the captivity of the killer whale Tilikum, who was involved in the deaths of three individuals, and the consequences of keeping such large and intelligent animals in captivity. The coverage of Tilikum begins with his capture in 1983 off the coast of Iceland, showing how he was harassed by fellow captive whales and left in dark tanks for hours – incidents which Cowperthwaite argues contributed to the whale's aggression. Cowperthwaite also focuses on SeaWorld's claims that whales in captivity live longer; a claim that the film argues is false.[3]

Development

Cowperthwaite began work on the film after the death of Tilikum's trainer Dawn Brancheau and in response to the claim that the whale had targeted the trainer due to her wearing her hair in a ponytail.[4] Cowperthwaite argued that this claim had been conjecture and that "there had to be more to this story".[4]

Reception

Critical reception for the documentary has been overwhelmingly positive. Review aggregation website Rotten Tomatoes gives the film a "Certified Fresh" score of 98% based on reviews from 91 critics.[5]

The Deseret News called it "a gripping example of documentary filmmaking at its finest".[6] Twitch Film and The Hollywood Reporter both praised Blackfish, with both review sites arguing that the film gave "a persuasive case against keeping the species – and by extension any wild animal – in captivity for the purposes of human entertainment".[7][8] Film School Rejects gave the documentary a rating of B−, writing that it "never really offers anything new, but what it does feature is extremely important" and that it was "slanted in it view [sic]".[9] [10]

The ending to the upcoming animated film Finding Dory was revised after Pixar's John Lasseter and Andrew Stanton saw the film and spoke with director Gabriela Cowperthwaite. The depiction of a marine park in the film was altered.[11]

Home media

The film was released on DVD and Blu-ray August 26, 2013, in the UK (Region 2, PAL).[12] Its US release is slated for November 12, 2013.[13]

The documentary is due to broadcast on CNN October 24, 2013.[11]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Blackfish (2013)". Box Office Mojo. Amazon.com.
  2. ^ "'Blackfish' has SeaWorld in hot water". Jackson Daily News. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  3. ^ a b "'Blackfish' has SeaWorld in hot water". LA Times. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  4. ^ a b "Sundance Interview: 'Blackfish' Director Gabriela Cowperthwaite Discusses Suffering Orcas, Trainer Death, and Why SeaWorld Hasn't Seen the Movie". IndieWire. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  5. ^ "Blackfish". Rotten Tomatoes.
  6. ^ "Sundance review: 'Blackfish' is an alarming film". Deseret News. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  7. ^ "Blackfish: Sundance Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  8. ^ "Sundance 2013 Review: BLACKFISH is an Important Look at Animal Captivity". Twitch Film. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  9. ^ "Sundance 2013 Review: 'Blackfish' Finds Beauty and Terror in the Chlorinated Depths". Film School Rejects. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  10. ^ Justin Chang (January 26, 2013). "Review: Blackfish". Variety. Retrieved 13 February 2013.
  11. ^ a b Kaufman, Amy (9 August 2013). "'Blackfish' gives Pixar second thoughts on 'Finding Dory' plot". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 9 August 2013.
  12. ^ http://www.amazon.co.uk/Blackfish-DVD-Kim-Ashdown/dp/B00BARKZ1G
  13. ^ http://www.amazon.com/Blackfish/dp/B00EL6AAEU/ref=tmm_dvd_title_0?ie=UTF8&qid=1379013799&sr=8-1
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