Blackfish: Trailer
Just finding out now about Blackfish – a documentary about Tilikum, the performing killer whale that killed three people.
Captured off the coast of Iceland in 1983, Tillikum has lived in captivity ever since and sired 21 offspring. Most recently/notably, Tilikum was responsible for the death of 40 year old trainer Dawn Brancheau in 2010.
This looks to be a really fascinating documentary, though it also looks like it would be really tough to sit through. I still haven’t gotten up the courage to watch The Cove yet, and some portions of the trailer strike me as being difficult to watch.
I’m so torn when it comes to zoos and places like SeaWorld. On the one hand, seeing so many animals engenders in me a great deal of awe and respect for the diversity we have on our planet. I think of myself when I was younger, as well as my nieces and nephews… and to me, zoos and aquariums are places of wonderment and learning.
But those establishments all come at a price, and it’s the animals that pay it. I think I’d like to see this film, but I wonder if I’ll get past my guilt and go buy a ticket.
Related:
Shedd Aquarium, 2006
Indianapolis Zoo, 2008
San Diego SeaWorld’s Penguin Cam
A Brief Visit to the Lincoln Park Zoo, 2013
While I’ve been doing some research and I don’t think orcas belong in captivity (or really any non-domesticated creature, as much as I appreciate being able to see them in person), I have a friend who worked at Sea World and she 100% thinks that this incident was Dawn’s fault.
Mellzah (September 6, 2013 at 2:31 pm)“Fault” is such a tricky thing in this instance, as it seems a tragedy. But then the word tragedy is a bit off as well – since one could argue that this could all have been avoided, if we simply hadn’t held a non-domesticated creature in captivity.
Interesting to hear your friend’s perspective – I’d be curious to hear more about her thinking. I’m now even more interested in seeing this film.
avoision (September 10, 2013 at 7:19 am)