Blackfish
Director: Gabriela Cowperthwaite
In film, orcas, popularly known as killer whales, are either our friends or monsters, or animals who can basically live up to their names. In the movie Free Willy, Willy the killer whale was depicted as a friendly animal. Just last year, Rust and Bone, starring Marion Cotillard, showed the danger of being a whale trainer. As Cotillard's character's legs were amputated because she was attacked by a killer whale during a show. There's also a 1977 horror film, Orca, which is like a version of Jaws, except killer whales serve as the deadly sharks. To a degree, these films gave us an impression of killer whales, but these are work of fiction. This year, Blackfish, a documentary directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite, proved that all of this could be true, but not quite, as this film showed more light in the behavior of these black and white creatures. One would realize how ignorant he/she was about these mammals after watching this.
Blackfish focuses on the death of Dawn Brancheau, a 40-year old whale trainer of SeaWorld in Florida who was killed by Tilikum, the largest orca in captivity. The documentary further explained the dangers of keeping these species away from their natural habitat. Cowperthwaite also covered the case filed againt SeaWorld Florida and their claims that Dawn was killed because of her own malpractice, and not the aggression of Tilikum.
Cowperthwaite presented great arguments about the risk of keeping killer whales in captivity. Several former SeaWorld trainers were interviewed and revealed the wrongdoings of the said institution like claiming that whales in captivity live longer, for one. She also emphasized the difference of behaviors of killer whiles in the wild and in captivity. It was mentioned by a neuroscientist in the film that killer whales have emotions stronger than any other mammals, they can be friendly to humans, and they naturally stand for each other. Being in a pool away from their natural habitat, can lead to psychosis, stress, frustration and their death which can also be fatal to the trainers who work with them for shows. These effects were further proven with footage of distressed behavior of killer whales whose babies were transferred away from them. Basically, the documentary showed sharply the repercussions of the confinement of killer whales and why they are not safe for human beings.
What a powerful feature, as strong as these creatures are! As I've tweeted after watching this documentary, my outlook on ocean parks and zoos will never be the same again. They're forever tainted. That just goes to show how strong Blackfish moved me. Any institution that holds responsible for capturing wild animals for their own revenue, even if it means the lives of their employees and even if it means that the animals in captivity would suffer, is just plain disgusting. See, prior to watching this film, I never even thought of this. I was ignorant. I was too focused on the false entertainment that they bring. Even the whale trainers were blinded by these institutions, that if not for the death of one of them, they wouldn't realize how huge of a threat these killer whales in captivity possess. But this documentary explained well that most of us are naive of this fact because our knowledge of these institutions are too positive. I don't want to generalize all ocean parks and zoos, but upon rethinking, the primary reason of these parks is not to entertain tourists or people in general, it's money. Greed fuels them to do this. It's depressing.
While Blackfish offers something past documentaries like Werner Herzog's Grizzly Man and Louie Psihoyos' The Cove have accomplished already, it's powerful message is extremely important to ignore. I really hope many people see it, as it can really change one's view completely, like what it did to me. It's for the good.
Prisoners
Director: Denis Villeneuve
With: Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Paul Dano, Viola Davis, Terrence Howard, Maria Bello, Melissa Leo
Every viewer would find themselves hypothesizing the conclusion of Prisoners throughout its two and a half hours running time. And even after the end credits, Prisoners would make its audience pick up the pieces of this mind-boggling crime-thriller-mystery-suspense-psychological-drama, about a religious man in search for his missing daughter who struggled with his own demons during the process.
A compelling story, bleak cinematography and superb performances by its cast, along with Denis Villeneuve's sharp direction and some elements of Silence of the Lambs, Prisoners made for an exciting film that surely put its viewers' eyes glued to the screen. It's engaging from start to finish. More thanks to the well thought screenplay of Aaron Guzikowski, which presented story lines that made each character of this film seem like the suspect to a mystery that will end up blindsiding its viewers. I'm pretty sure, most of us in the theater, if not all, did not see the twist coming. It builds up by showing answers and clues while ironically putting more questions to the mystery of the story. It's like playing Clue without the mansion, instead, the playing field is a gloomy suburb where the game seems impossible to win.
Not gonna lie, I was never a fan of Hugh Jackman's performance in Les Miserables, or him as an actor in general. I acknowledge his acting chops yet I never find him that good. But he's proven me wrong and probably anyone who doubted him, as his performance in Prisoners is thrilling and moving. It's over the top but it suits the situation well. He captured the emotions of a father desperate to find his daughter and appease his longing wife. It's unfortunate because he's really good in this, but he might fall a little short in snagging major award nods. Kind of ironic because he was acknowledged easily last year. I'm not surprised though as Jean Valjean is too baity of a character to be ignored. If he would fail, I hope Jake Gyllenhaal doesn't, because he has also proven in this film that he's really one of the underrated actors of his generation. He's the unsung hero of this film with his subtle yet dominant portrayal of a detective determined to help find the missing daughter. Paul Dano, Viola Davis and Melissa Leo also did a magnificent job with each of their unique and complex characters. Emphasis to the magnificent because they truly were magnificent. It's a joy seeing these actors in one film especially here where their acting prowess are well-utilized.
I think this movie is going to be one of the overlooked gems of the year. If only it had a better, non-generic title, lol. But I'm hoping for more success for this film as everything about it deserves to be acknowledged. It may have holes and questionable logic, I still believe its strengths are worthy enough to see.
Sana Dati
Director: Jerrold Tarog
With: Lovi Poe, Paulo Avelino, TJ Trinidad
I was not able to see this during the Cinemalaya week as it didn't interest me. I thought its trailer was just okay. But after numerous recommendations, hype and awards that it got, I grabbed the opportunity to finally watch it when it was released nationwide. Sadly to say, I probably expected too much from it. While I don't think it's bad, I thought it's just okay. I'm the Sana Dati black sheep.
It's not until the second half of the story that I've come to appreciate it. One of the strengths of this Cinemalaya Best Film is Tarog's way of storytelling. Each character's mystery is fascinating and they're presented not in the typical way. I commend how this film tackles a subject that we rarely see in Filipino films. Add to that is the fact that it has some of the best shots I've ever seen in a film. Although I wish those shots were consistent, but they made the most out of the setting of the film.
Sana Dati also works because of Lovi Poe's brave portrayal of a lost woman trying to cope up with her past, and Paulo Avelino's subtle and mysterious representation of a wedding videographer, with deeper motives with the bride. Both performances were appropriate with their roles. I admire Lovi Poe's flirtatious ways in the film as they're very effective and natural. She matches them with vulnerability as needed. She outshines everyone in the film but Avelino is not far behind. His committed portrayal of a quiet and obscure character is effective. The rest of the cast is actually good. Some of them brought the laffos! But perhaps, what's really keeping me from fully loving the film is that I didn't like Lovi Poe's character. I understand that her character is going through a big dilemma, but I find her character too immoral. I don't want to be a prude but that's just how I feel about her character. I like that her character is brave but her weakness exudes with her decisions. And that's probably the beauty of Sana Dati, it's not something that you expect.
Sana Dati almost has no catharsis to its main issue. But in a way, it makes the film more realistic. It ended in a mature manner, instead of ending it by pleasing its viewers.
Super Size Me
Director: Morgan Spurlock
With: Morgan Spurlock, Alexandra Jamieson
I've known this documentary for a long time before I've seen it. I've been informed by a classmate way back in high school. It was a casual conversation. I wasn't a huge fan of films and documentaries back then. But the premise had me interested instantly, as I'm a food lover, or should I say a fast food lover. Plus, who wouldn't get stirred with the idea of eating fast food only for 30 days?
I also just found out that Super Size Me is an Oscar nominated documentary. And Morgan Spurlock, the director, writer, producer and the star of this film directed and co-produced One Direction: This Is Us! He's gone a long way since Super Size Me. In fact, I also learned that he and his wife Alexandra who was featured prominently in this film have divorced already. Too bad because their relationship was featured in Super Size Me and they seemed like a nice couple.
But anyway, there's nothing much to say about Super Size Me. I expected to like it a lot more than I do after watching it. But I probably know much about how bad fast food are today that's why it's not that enlightening anymore. I would probably like this more if I watched it years ago. Still, it's a good documentary. It's fun, and I still learned some facts from it. Spurlock sure knows the audience's interest judging his other documentaries after Super Size Me. Oh, it also kind of influenced my diet. I'll try to lessen my softdrink intake now, for sure. D:
An Inconvenient Truth
Director: Davis Guggenheim
With: Al Gore
Al Gore presented a serious matter in a light way. In this documentary, as we know, it's about Global Warming. I didn't know that Gore is this charismatic.
I've known this documentary for a long time now but I was never able to see it. As a self proclaimed nature lover :3, I should have seen this a long time ago. I thought Al Gore presented great arguments about Global Warming. And he added ways to prevent it. It's very alarming and I'm pretty sure that this documentary opened the eyes of its viewers about the bad things we do to Mother Nature and how worse Mother Nature can retaliate.
