The Backlash against Blackfish

Well the first thing i can say in this article, is that Blackfish was robbed, despite being the most noteworthy, controversial and current documentary of the year, it failed to pick up an Oscar nomination, Blackfish was the only documentary released this year that had any kind of impact, yet the academy failed to recognize that, to be honest, Blackfish was the only documentary that most people saw or even heard of, shame on you AMPAS.

The film, my review of which can be viewed here, started a backlash against Seaworld the repurcussions of which are still being felt. Visitors at SeaWorld are down six percent from last year, and due to the company going public, they now have a huge amount of debt to contend with, it doesn't look good for BlackStone or for SeaWorld 'Entertainment', it is interesting that despite America now coming out of the recession, visitors are still down, so the decline in visitors is perhaps due to Americans realizing that they have a choice where to spend their vacation dollars. In fact Ondi Timoner, director of Bring Your Own Doc's son didn't want to go ti SeaWorld after seeing the film, proving that Blackfish is a powerful documentary that has the ability to change peoples opinions.

We can also see that even SeaWorld Entertainment knows that the decline in visitors is due to Blackfish, in December 2013, nearly a year after the release of the film, SeaWorld spent a fortune taking out a full page ad in The New York Times, to rebuke the events portrayed in the film, they also used twitter and YouTube to release videos and comments from SeaWorld trainers contradicting the events portrayed in the movie. The fact that they are willing to spend so much money, time and effort to rebuke what is portrayed shows two things, firstly that SeaWorld is scared, they realize the effect that this film has on people, that this film is stopping people coming tho their parks, and that they need to do something to combat the negative publicity against them.

Secondly, by rebuking the events in the film so strongly, they are in a sense validating them, if the film was a complete fantasy, they would just ignore it, but seeing as they are taking notice of this film, and attempting to fight back, it suggests that their is some validity to the films claims. A good parralel to this is the film Escape From Tomorrow, filmed clandestinely at Disney World and Disneyland, the film is less that complimentary about Disneys business practices and ethos, yet Disney didn't just ignore the film, they included it in Disney A to Z: The Official Encyclopedia, and didn't rebuke any of the events of the film or the films agenda. By rejecting so forcefully the concepts put forward by Blackfish, SeaWorld shows their vulnerability and manage to reinforce what this movie promotes. By taking out a full page ad in a national paper, all SeaWorld does is promote the movie and encourage more people to see it, and thus decrease ticket sales.

Whatever you think of Blackfish personally, it is impossible to ignore the powerful images it presents, whether you think that animals are deliberately mistreated at SeaWorld or not, the fact is that three people have been killed by Tilikum, the parks remain the only theme parks where workers are still injured regularly, and the list of incidents involving whales in SeaWorld parks is longer than my arm, the video footage of bleeding whales and rake marks across the whales backs is real, and it is a fact that Orcas die younger in the parks than they do in the wild. I suppose all there's left to say to SeaWorld is: "Karma's a bitch man".

Marina Abramovic - The Artist Is Present

The Artist is Present is a 2012 avant garde documentary which first aired on HBO, detailing the serbian born performance artist Marina Abramovic and the performance at the MOMA in 2011. At the MOMA Abramovic performed a 736 hour and 30 minute static and silent performance art piece which featured recreations of seven of her previous performances by upcoming performance artists and a piece in which Abramovic sat immobile in the museum's atrium and visitors were invited to sit opposite her to feed from her energy.

The Artist Is Present was the largest exhibition of performance art ever featured at the Met, and was the first true retrospective of Abramovic's work. This documentary covers the genesis, creative direction and preformance of Abramovic's piece. What was so groundbreaking about The Artist Is Present was how Abramovic gave equal time and attention to each visitor, whether they were famous or not, the presence of Lady Gaga, James Franco and Sharon Stone was of little or no consequence. The documentary does largely the same thing, Gaga and Stone are not shown, and Franco, one of Abramovic's personal friends features only shortly in the video.

What is interestinng about this documentary is that it focuses as much on the spectator as it does on the artist, although the film is definitely an exploration and a celebration of Abramovic's work, the film centers largely on the people visiting the exhibition, what motivates them, how does Marina inspire them, and why they are there. the first part of the film is largely a look back at past Abramovic works, such as her works with Ulay and The Lovers, a piece in which she and Ulay each walked from opposite ends of the great wall of china in order to say goodbye to other and to end their relationship, a beautifully poetic piece.

Marina's sheer power is shown in this film, and her ability to project her emotions are show even through the lens, many patrons discovered themselves bursting into tears in her presence, and the sheer power in her eyes and her face is enough even to make those watching this film cry, Abramovic has the ability to see directly into the soul of those sitting opposite her, this ability is what makes her so powerful and limitless, and this documentary is a success simply because it show off it's greatest asset stunningly, Marina Abramovic is portrayed as one of the most defining performance artists of all time.

The Artist Is Present is a surely made and fascinating documentary, it showcase the incredible performance ability of it's star, Marina Abramovic and it is able to answer the decade old question that has always been asked about Marina; 'why is this art?'. Rating: B-

Marina Abramovic: When you perform it is a knife and your blood, when you act it is a fake knife and ketchup.

Five Favorite Documentaries

Well my last post about my five favorite directors was fairly popular, and i have been going through a documentary phase, and so i decided to list my favorite documentaries. Documentary film making is a powerful genre, and one that cannot be replicated by narrative film, it is retrospective, fascinating and real.

• In Bed With Madonna

Also known as Truth or Dare, In Bed With Madonna offers a unique insight into the world of Madonna, before she was really Madonna, she was just a young girl from Michigan with a dream, and that shines through in this movie. Part documentary, part concert film, In Bed With Madonna is a small snapshot of a time in which Madonna was far more carefree and much less self serious, unafraid to take risks, push boundaries and have fun. The film was hugely influential, becoming the highest grossing documentary of all time, and becoming the blueprint for countless other mimics such as Katy Perry: Part of Me, Believe and Never Say Never. Madonna subsequently followed this up with I'm Going To Tell You A Secret.

• Blackfish

 I have already written about this film rather a lot and i invite people wanting to know more to see my review HERE. Blackfish is less of a documentary and more of a thriller, about an orca named Tillikum, who is responsible for the deaths of three people. The film analyzes the reasons for his being kept in captivity, and is a critique of SeaWorld Entertainments ecological and ethical policy.

• Waking Sleeping Beauty

 This documentary focuses on the Disney renaissance, the era of Disney animation in which i grew up, and by far the most successful and prolific era of Disney animated movies. Waking Sleeping Beauty (review HERE) despite being released by Walt Disney Pictures is a fascinating and unfettered look at the infighting and tension occurring behind the scenes, and is a fantastic tribute to the monumental artists who are solely responsible for the success of that era.

• Bowling For Columbine

This film was also once the highest grossing documentary of all time, and won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature in 2002. Directed by Michael Moore the film revolves around the columbine massacre, a high school shooting in Colorado. The film is a critique of the accessibility of guns in modern America, and looks at issues such as weapons of mass destruction, the climate of fear and the war on terror. The title refers to the fact that the perpetrators were known to have played bowling the morning of the attack, the documentary is fascinating, consuming and infuriating, and will change your opinions of the way we look at violence in modern culture.

• The September Issue

I reviewed this film rather recently, The September Issue is a documentary film about Anna Wintour and the creation of the September issue of Vogue Magazine. An interesting look at the fashion industry, the publishing industry, and the sheer control that Anna Wintour has over the publication, the film offers an insight that can't be found in narrative films such as The Devils Wears Prada, and succeeds in showing us the woman behind the sunglasses and the pageboy bob.

The September Issue

Welcome back, hope you all celebrated Star Wars Day in the appropriate way, i briefly considered reviewing Return Of The Jedi, but i decided that three Star Wars posts in as many days may be somewhat overkill, so i will leave it till later to complete my series on the original trilogy. The September Issue is a 2008 documentary feature revolving around the production of the september issue of Vogue magazine, directed by RJ Cutler, the film looks at the conception, writing and styling of the magazine, and the conception of what was, at the time, the largest edition of a monthly magazine ever produced at 820 pages.

The film revolves around Vogue and it's editor in chief, Anna Wintour, notoriously frosty and cold, Wintour runs Vogue with an iron fist, and that is apparent from this film, however the film also does a good job of showing us the woman behind the pageboy bob and the large sunglasses. The idea for the film came about in 2006, after the release of The Devil Wears Prada, the film had the unintended consequence of turning Wintour into a celebrity outside of the fashion industry, and giving her a reputation for being mean, frosty and unemotional, in order to repair her image, Wintour commissioned a documentary, detailing her private and professional life, and the development of the magazine.

The film begins by showing us the Vogue offices, Wintour's country home in upstate New York, and her life with her daughter, a university law student, the film then shows us Wintour's trip to europe and her meetings with the fashion council in Paris. What is hugely focused on in the movie is Wintour's relationship with Grace Coddington, Coddington, a former model who is now fashion editor at American Vogue. The relationship between the two is featured heavily throughout the film, and Coddington often seems to be the only person who occasionally stands up to Wintour.

The September Issue is highly successful as a documentary, as it provides an unadulterated and reasonably unfiltered look into the creative process at Vogue Magazine and the way Anna Wintour runs the magazine, the film also manages to make it's protagonist, who was previously thought of as being cold and unapproachable, into someone empathic and strangely likeable. The September Issue is entertaining and fun, and is an accessible documentary for anyone interested in fashion. Rating: B

Anna Wintour: Just because you like to put on a beautiful Carolina Herrera dress or a pair of J Brand blue jeans instead of something basic from K-Mart it doesn't mean that you're a dumb person.

Blackfish

Blackfish is a  documentary about orcas kept in captivity, notably at SeaWorld The film was directed by  Gabriella Cowperthwaite, and produced by CNN films as part of their documentary series. The film uses interviews with former SeaWorld trainers, along with stock footage and archive news reports. The film focuses mainly on the whale Tilikum, the largest whale currently being kept in captivity, and one of the earliest to be caught, who is responsible for the deaths of three people.

The film details chronologically the time from the capture of Tillikum off the coast of Iceland, to his killing of Dawn Brancheau in 2010 and the subsequent lawsuit. The film takes the perspective that the capture and confinement of orca's is wrong, that orcas live longer in the wild, and that SeaWorld won't admit these facts due to it being economically advantageous to keep these animals captive. The film also features various interviews with marine biologists and orca specialists, explaining the shortened lifespan of these animals, and how their conditions may be harmful.

At Seaworld, beautiful, majestic intelligent creatures are kept in cramped, dank tanks, and encouraged to do silly tricks so that fat tourists can point and laugh, despite the tanks at SeaWorld being significantly larger that the proscribed legal size, the tanks will never be big enough, in the wild orcas can swim hundreds of miles a day, and have incredibly close nit family units, whereas at SeaWorld and the like, these animals are crammed together, artificially inseminated, often with close family members, and the mothers are separated from their young soon after birth. The film tells a heartbreaking story about a mother separated from her daughter, who floats at the edge of her tank and calls for her, moving and emotional this is film making at it's best.

Many have stated that the documentary doesn't present a balanced viewpoint, and that the film is biased. I feel that we already know SeaWorld's point of view (SeaWorld was contacted numerous times for a statement), they make their point of view known every day when the force poor animals to perform tricks for fat tourists, do we really need to hear it again?I feel that fictional, narrative driven movies are allowed not to be impartial, and no one criticizes them for being biased, yet the instant a documentary appears, everyone suddenly expects impartiality. Despite tha fact that this film was produced by CNN films, it is not a news broadcast, nor are the filmmakers journalists, they are directors, and they have succeeded at making a chilling documentary about a complex issue.

The only thing this documentary doesn't explain in any depth is the legal issue surrounding the scandal, and doesn't tell us why the animal hasn't been put down, or why he is still allowed to perform. Despite perhaps it's focus being a little off, Blackfish remains a compelling watch about a difficult subject. Rating: B

John Hargrove: Those are not your whales.

Waking Sleeping Beauty

Last night i had a bit of a surprise, i had always been fascinated by disney animation, and growing up during the disney renaissance, and living now through the disney revival, i was intrigued by Waking Sleeping Beauty, a documentary detailing the rebuilding of the animation department during the late 80's and early 90's. The film is produced by the Walt Disney Company itself, and yet provides an honest and unbiased insight into the period between the production of The Black Cauldron and The Lion King.

The film is notable for the fact that it uses no new filmed interviews, instead it uses new audio recordings and archive footage, most of it filmed guerrilla style without permission by employees of the animation department, as well as vintage recorded interviews and clips from various disney movies of the era. The film starts by detailing the state of the animation department at the height of its success, just before the release of the lion king, when the money was pouring in and animation had become a powerhouse again, the movie then details the era from 1984 up to this point, showing the rebuilding of the animation department.

The film, despite being released by Walt Disney Pictures, offers an unbiased and honest account of this period, the film openly depicts the infighting and tension of this period. The company was being restructured and Michael Eisner was brought in as chairman, and he brought in Jeffrey Katzenberg, his colleague from Dreamworks. He quickly ruffled feathers by personally editing The Black Cauldron, to make it more child friendly, and insisting that he wanted to win the 'Bank of America Award'. The artists were terrified they were going to be layed off, they were finally unceremoniously evicted from the inking and painting building on the disney lot, and forced to move into a delapidated warehouse in glendale, a big shock for the department who developped Cinderella and Peter Pan. From the ashes the animation department rose into flame and produced some of the best animated films of all time.

Overall i found the film to be surprisingly honest, the film despite being produced by the Walt Disney Company, doesn't sugar coat any of the events portrayed, and is honest about the sleepless nights, the long hours, the carpal tunnel and the overworking, and is refreshingly honest about the difficulties of working for the Walt Disney Company, including dealing with difficult bosses, including Roy E Disney, Walt's nephew.

Waking Sleeping Beauty is a surprisingly watchable film, and doesn't sink to the salacious depths of other Michael Moore style documentaries, and manages to be surprisingly balanced, not having a singular narrative voice, but many, the film, if one has to see a point of view, is essentially from the point of view of the artists, and tends to empathize with them rather than the management or the marketing department, interesting considering that disney is a mega-corporation known for marketing themselves as being like a family. Waking Sleeping Beauty is a surprisingly fascinating look into one of the most tumultuous and groundbreaking decades in the history of animation. Rating: A-