Blackfish (2013)
Average Rating: 7.9/10
Reviews Counted: 94
Fresh: 92 | Rotten: 2
Blackfish is an aggressive, impassioned documentary that will change the way you look at performance killer whales.
Average Rating: 8/10
Critic Reviews: 26
Fresh: 25 | Rotten: 1
Blackfish is an aggressive, impassioned documentary that will change the way you look at performance killer whales.
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Average Rating: 4.3/5
User Ratings: 9,043
Movie Info
Magnolia Pictures invites you and a guest to attend an advance screening of BLACKFISH, an eye-opening documentary directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite. Many of us have experienced the excitement and awe of watching 8,000-pound orcas, or "killer whales," soar out of the water and fly through the air at sea parks, as if in perfect harmony with their trainers. Yet, in our contemporary lore this mighty black-and-white mammal is like a two-faced Janus-beloved as a majestic, friendly giant yet infamous
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Blackfish Trailer & Photos
All Critics (94) | Top Critics (26) | Fresh (92) | Rotten (2)
"Blackfish" is a disturbing movie, one that will make you rethink parks like SeaWorld and their value.
Top CriticBlackfish is intended to rattle and provoke in the hopes of bringing about change.
"Blackfish" is grim. But then again, so is the plight of these magnificent, intelligent whales.
Informative, earnest, but less than briskly paced.
"Blackfish" makes a compelling case that the cruelty of life in captivity is the cause for a rash of fatal attacks by orcas on their trainers, aggressive behavior that no so-called killer whale ever has exhibited in the wild.
Its ultimate message is clear: Killer whales belong with their families in their natural habitat, not performing for audiences. After listening to this film's many impassioned voices, it's hard to argue.
It builds a compelling case to show the negative results of capturing and confining such noble creatures as the blackfish.
Blackfish takes an emotional argument and supports it with just enough logic to make it convincing.
Although emotionally wrenching and not recommend for young children, 'Blackfish' helps us re-think our relationship with nature.
It's a riveting tale that will make you rethink where humans and orcas fall in the natural food chain and the corporate one.
likely to never again buy a ticket to a marine theme park again
We have traditionally taken license to do as we will with our fellow creatures, whether that means slaughtering them for food or dressing them up for Halloween. Perhaps only a God created in our image could sanction ... the ways we exploit the vulnerable.
In many ways, "Blackfish" is a horror film in which we discover that we have met the monster, and the monster is us.
Blackfish is what happens when human arrogance trumps harsh natural reality.
It doesn't go very far out of its way to tell more than one side of the story, but the one side of the story that it does tell is an exceedingly compelling and moving one.
The movie recounts - often with horrifying video - several instances in which trainers are mauled, chomped and otherwise clobbered by killer whales.
Blackfish is a zoological horror story, a corporate expose and a heartbreaking example of inhumane practices and predictable consequences ignored.
There are few movies that can change the way you see the world in 83 minutes. If Blackfish is seen by enough people, it has the power to affect attendance at SeaWorld.
You don't have to be anything close to a PETA loyalist or an anthropomorphist to appreciate the genuine sorrow and eventual psychosis on display in footage of these whales.
Whatever its flaws, 'Blackfish' seems likely to be the rare film that inspires real reform and that helps awaken viewers to their kinship and responsibility to the animal kingdom.
The question that "Blackfish" provokes, viscerally, is whether the education and entertainment for visitors, and profits for the company, are worth it if the animals are mistreated and unhappy. After watching "Blackfish," the answer is crystal clear.
Depressingly unsurprising.
While Blackfish isn't exactly riveting, it is thought-provoking and leaves you with the urge to admire nature in its natural habitat rather than in a contained environment.
A repetitive but still compelling piece of activist filmmaking.
Audience Reviews for Blackfish
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Discussion Forum
| Topic | Last Post | Replies |
|---|---|---|
| Charlie Lyne is a corporate whore | 2 months ago | 1 |
| I think it's time for a consensus RT | 2 months ago | 0 |
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