July 8th, 2013 
Tyler Osborne 
Film: Blackfish
Directed by: Gabriela Cowperthwaite
Studio: Magnolia Pictures
Before the lineup of films was released to the public, Blackfish was one of the films I really hoped was going to be at AFI Docs this year. I had heard through the wire that Blackfish, a story about Sea World’s mistreatment of their beloved whales, was one of the most intense documentaries of 2013, so naturally I wanted to know more about it. When AFI Docs announced that it was indeed playing at this year’s festival, I was overjoyed, but nervous if it could live up to the hype I had already built up in my head. The trailer was dark and brooding, it had to be good, right? So as I sat down in the theater and lights went dark, I gritted my teeth and hoped it would live up to my expectations. I am happy to report that Blackfish was one of the best documentaries of AFI Docs film festival.
For those who don’t know, Blackfish is a documentary that was sparked after the death of SeaWorld trainer Dawn Brancheau, at the hands of SeaWorld’s famous killer whale, Tilikum. The film chronicles Tilikum’s beginnings as a whale in captivity, and follows the giant orca throughout its life, and how he has been mistreated over the years. Just as a forewarning, Blackfish is not for the feint of heart. There is an easy comparison of Blackfish being similar to that of 2009’s The Cove, but while it isn’t as graphic, Blackfish doesn’t shy away from showing the negative effects of keeping whales in captivity. It’s important to note that this film is most certainly an expose film, so there is a heavy bias throughout the entirety of the film, so if you’re not into watching films with a very prominent slant, this may not be the movie for you. That being said, Blackfish does indicate that the filmmakers did reach out to SeaWorld, so it made me feel a little bit better about the intense SeaWorld bashing that took place. All films have a bias, it’s an innate quality that comes with making something artistic, so Blackfish can’t be completely at fault with not presenting the other side, although I would have liked to see more of it.
Filmmaking wise, Blackfish is top notch in terms of modern documentary production. The interviews look great, and there is a wealth of archive footage the film utilizes that really show a visual history of Tilikum and other whales in captivity. During the Q&A one of the producers talked about the countless hours of footage the film had in terms of old, archive footage, and Blackfish really benefited by keeping the flow dynamic and paced using old news coverage. The film was also edited in a very fast paced way so that the film had a sense of urgency that reflected its overall message.
All in all, Blackfish was one of the most well put together documentaries at AFI Docs, in terms of great storytelling, great production, and actually having something they wanted to say. It’s this amalgamation of filmmaking that is going to make a real contender this year in the Best Documentary category at the Academy Awards. Blackfish is going to be one of the year’s most talked about films, and it’s for a good reason.
Blackfish swims into limited theaters on July 19.
A-
Written By: Tyler Osborne
- UTG PREMIERE: Kill Lincoln – “Good Riddance to Good Advice” Music Video - March 10, 2015
- REVIEW: You Blew It! – ‘Pioneer of Nothing’ EP - January 26, 2015
- Kill Lincoln Announce Spring Tour - January 14, 2015
Posted in 
Tags: 