Analysis Of 'Town Upset Over The Cove'
The Cove - Worth an Oscar
This paper will comment on an article called “Town upset over 'The Cove '”. Drawing upon the scenes from the film, some lines from the article Bill Nichol’s “Introduction to Documentary” this paper will begin by telling the audience why the film was made very well and why it deserved an Oscar. It will then enlist specific scenes in the movie that show the reasons it is a good movie. This paper will argue that it is right for the cove to win an Oscar. It will raise a larger question about how the combination of documentaries and thriller or non-fiction can be better than just making a documentary.
An Oscar award is given to many movies in different categories every year and every year one or two movies …show more content…
are put in the spotlight on whether they deserved it or not. For example, the Cove, an Oscar winning film by Louie Psihoyos talks about the issue of dolphin slaughter in Japan. The movie is made like a thriller movie where the fishermen are portrayed as the villans and Ric O’Barry and his team are portrayed as the heroes. The movie gained a lot of criticism. One local fisherman said that "The way it was filmed was wrong, and the scenes it contains are inaccurate. It shouldn 't win an Oscar" When the movie was released the Japanese people tried to stop the screening of the film in Japan by saying that it is their tradition and they shouldn’t be criticized for it. The film definitely deserved an Oscar not only because it highlighted a very sensitive but because how well it highlighted the issue and kept the audience entertained through the whole movie which is the primary aim of any movie. What makes a movie an Oscar winning movie? There are many things that an Oscar winning movie should have. Firstly an Oscar winning movie should be able to capture the audience’s attention really well and not only capture it but should also make sure that the audience doesn’t sway away. This is one of the most difficult things to do. Also an Oscar winning movie is supposed to appeal to the emotional side of the audience. The movie should leave a deep impact on the minds of the audience. Another thing that the movie should have is a combination of different camera techniques and filming techniques that appeal to the audience; the techniques which makes the audience feel like they are a part of the movie. The music used, the camera techniques used and the characters used all combine and contribute to the capturing the attention of the audience. The music in the movie plays a very key role. The music in every scene very subtly tells the audience what to feel in that particular scene. For example, the music used in the starting very is secretive and very mischievous. The music itself captures the attention of audience really well. It makes them believe that this movie will show something really interesting. Also, the music used when Ric O’Barry is telling the audience how the fisherman get the dolphins towards the island is very low and mellow and it makes the audience feel bad for the dolphins without even knowing how brutally they are murdered. This approach of using music is very different from documentarians like Fredrick Wiseman who don’t “use music to manipulate the spectator’s feelings” (537). But what he doesn’t realize that it helps the audience get a better understanding of the movie. The camera techniques used in the movie also contribute greatly. The movie starts with the movie being shot with a normal camera and then it suddenly shifts to a thermal camera. The use of thermal camera has always intrigued the audience. In this movie the thermal camera played an important role as it made the audience feel like they were showing us something that the audience is not supposed to watch. Even a simple shot of butchers cutting up the meat is made to look as if it is a top secret video that would not be available anywhere else. It appeals to the audience’s “epistaphilia (desire to know)” (40). Secondly, the use of the night vision camera also adds to the audience’s interest in the movie. The ending scene of the movie in which they show how the set up their equipment and the cameras around the place where the dolphins are murdered is shot with a night vision camera so that the audience also feels like they are right there with the team setting up those cameras.
Another great technique which was used is that in the end they show how the movie affected the people in the movie. For example, in the end they show that “Private space has been removed from his position at the cove.” After seeing this the audience feels that the villans, that is the fisherman got what they deserved. This really has a deep impact on the audience as it makes them realize that in real life as well evil always pays and it ends the movie on a happy note. There are many various fimling techniques which combine to form a good movie. One of them would be a very popular technique of starting the movie with a part of the ending. The Cove starts with the scene of the team putting the cameras in place. This part was shot with a night vision camera. This technique is very useful as it gets the audience excited and makes them wait for that particular scene to come. Another would be the use of a strong script.The word choice is very good and makes the whole movie very interesting. When the movie starts Ric O’Barry says “the town of Taiji. A little town with a really big secret.” This sentence was a very good sentence to say in the starting. It makes the audience very curious what this secret is. It makes them want to know how they are able to hide it so well and why nobody knows about this. Another example of the strong script would be when Ric O’Barry says “if these fisherman could catch me and kill me they would.” This excites the audience. In addition the whole movie is made like an action movie with real people and a real situation. The movie is somewhat like an Oceans Eleven movie. Similar to that movie The Cove also has a group of people who are shown as the heroes of the movie. The whole movie shows how Ric O’Barry and his are team are the heroes and how the fisherman are the villans. This really appeals to the audience. Even how the different characters are introduced to the audience makes them think like they are the good guys. For example, when Charles Hambleton is being introduced Psihoyos refers to him as an “adrenaline junkie.” He tells us that he was “the sale master on the pirates of the Caribbean” to show us that he has already part of other action movies. They show him riding a boat and coming towards the camera and then they show him on a yacht pulling on a rope which really impresses the audience and makes them believe that he is the guy whose going to make everything right. This makes the audience really excited for the next part of the movie. Some people might argue and say that how they introduce is just to add some glamour to the movie. The fact that Louis Psihoyos refers to their team as an “Ocean’s Eleven” team is also to add glamour to the movie by making a direct connection to a Hollywood movie. They might say that it takes away from the movie. But rather than taking away it adds to the film in the sense that it helps the audience to get a better understanding of the film and the characters. It helps the audience understand why the people in the team are supporting the cause and how they came into the whole picture. Another factor that adds to the film is the fact that Ric O’ Barry is the narrator or the protagonist of the film. He was part of the “evil side.” What that means is that he was part of the people who buy dolphins from places like Taiji and contribute to the dolphin slaughter. He even made a tv show about dolphins. He tells his whole life story and how and why he changed sides. When the audience hears about this change of side the audience feels connected to the movie. They feel that a person whose been on both sides knows best and then they start believing in the cause. They somewhat become a part of their team. This technique was very useful and really helpful in convincing the audience that what they are showing is right. Robert Drew would agree with this statement and he would say that “[for] most documentary film-makers, narration remains a benign and a useful tool for making the kinds of films expected by their audiences” (272). Finally the overall movie is also made really well specially the build up to the climax.
The sequence of the scenes is very well organized and leaves a deep impact on the audience mind and makes sure that the audience is entertained in the whole movie. Initially they show how difficult it was for Ric O’ Barry to get through to the place where the slaughter happened. They show how he called Psihoyos to help him but he also isn’t able to do anything. Then they go to the scene where Psihoyos makes his Ocean’s eleven team and they come. When his team is introduced the audience feels as if that these guys will come and everything will be okay. This excites the audience but when the team meets with failure it really surprises the audience. Then they show how finally a bright idea from Psihoyos helped solve the whole problem and they were finally able to solve the problem. This idea of the team encounters many problems but is still able to shoot the scene really appeals to the audience and gets them …show more content…
involved. Some may argue that the fact that it is a combination of documentary and a thriller takes away focus from the main issue that is the slaughter of dolphins. They might say that it is entertaining but it doesn’t talk more about dolphin slaughter and doesn’t show the facts as they are. The thing that one should realize is that if it was made like a proper documentary and not a combination it would just become one of the hundred documentaries made on dolphin slaughter and no one would pay attention to it. So the fact that it is a combination does not take away from the movie rather adds to it. It gives us all the information and background required for us to understand what is going on in a very entertaining way. The Cove is a very well made movie.
It uses many different techniques to capture the audiences attention to a very sensitive issue. Psihoyos has used techniques to help the audience know what to feel in a particular scene. In some scenes he does it through the use of some particular music. In some cases he does it through shooting the scene from a night vision camera. Another technique that also helps us get a better understanding about the whole scene is the narration. The movie has all the characteristics that an Oscar winning film should have and it definitely deserves and Oscar. The movie points out a very interesting fact that is the combination of documentary and thrillers can definitely
work.
Works Cited
Atkins ,Thomas R. “ Fredrick Wisemans America: Titicut Follies to Primate” . The Documentary Tradition. 2nd edition. Ed Lewis Jacobs. New York.
Drew, Robert. “Narration Can Be a Killer.” Imaging Reality: The Faber Book of Documentary. Eds Kevin Macdonald and Mark Cosins. Boston: Faber and Faber.1998.Print
Nichols, Bill. Introduction to Documentary . 2nd Edition. Bloomington: Indiana University. Press. 2010. Print.
Psihoyos, Louie. The Cove. Toronto: Maple Pictures, 2009. Web. 5th December 2012
"Town Upset Over 'The Cove. '" AsiaOne News. The Yomiuri Shinbun, 27 February 2010. Web. 21 Oct. 2012.
This paper will comment on an article called “Town upset over 'The Cove '”. Drawing upon the scenes from the film, some lines from the article Bill Nichol’s “Introduction to Documentary” this paper will begin by telling the audience why the film was made very well and why it deserved an Oscar. It will then enlist specific scenes in the movie that show the reasons it is a good movie. This paper will argue that it is right for the cove to win an Oscar. It will raise a larger question about how the combination of documentaries and thriller or non-fiction can be better than just making a documentary.
An Oscar award is given to many movies in different categories every year and every year one or two movies …show more content…
are put in the spotlight on whether they deserved it or not. For example, the Cove, an Oscar winning film by Louie Psihoyos talks about the issue of dolphin slaughter in Japan. The movie is made like a thriller movie where the fishermen are portrayed as the villans and Ric O’Barry and his team are portrayed as the heroes. The movie gained a lot of criticism. One local fisherman said that "The way it was filmed was wrong, and the scenes it contains are inaccurate. It shouldn 't win an Oscar" When the movie was released the Japanese people tried to stop the screening of the film in Japan by saying that it is their tradition and they shouldn’t be criticized for it. The film definitely deserved an Oscar not only because it highlighted a very sensitive but because how well it highlighted the issue and kept the audience entertained through the whole movie which is the primary aim of any movie. What makes a movie an Oscar winning movie? There are many things that an Oscar winning movie should have. Firstly an Oscar winning movie should be able to capture the audience’s attention really well and not only capture it but should also make sure that the audience doesn’t sway away. This is one of the most difficult things to do. Also an Oscar winning movie is supposed to appeal to the emotional side of the audience. The movie should leave a deep impact on the minds of the audience. Another thing that the movie should have is a combination of different camera techniques and filming techniques that appeal to the audience; the techniques which makes the audience feel like they are a part of the movie. The music used, the camera techniques used and the characters used all combine and contribute to the capturing the attention of the audience. The music in the movie plays a very key role. The music in every scene very subtly tells the audience what to feel in that particular scene. For example, the music used in the starting very is secretive and very mischievous. The music itself captures the attention of audience really well. It makes them believe that this movie will show something really interesting. Also, the music used when Ric O’Barry is telling the audience how the fisherman get the dolphins towards the island is very low and mellow and it makes the audience feel bad for the dolphins without even knowing how brutally they are murdered. This approach of using music is very different from documentarians like Fredrick Wiseman who don’t “use music to manipulate the spectator’s feelings” (537). But what he doesn’t realize that it helps the audience get a better understanding of the movie. The camera techniques used in the movie also contribute greatly. The movie starts with the movie being shot with a normal camera and then it suddenly shifts to a thermal camera. The use of thermal camera has always intrigued the audience. In this movie the thermal camera played an important role as it made the audience feel like they were showing us something that the audience is not supposed to watch. Even a simple shot of butchers cutting up the meat is made to look as if it is a top secret video that would not be available anywhere else. It appeals to the audience’s “epistaphilia (desire to know)” (40). Secondly, the use of the night vision camera also adds to the audience’s interest in the movie. The ending scene of the movie in which they show how the set up their equipment and the cameras around the place where the dolphins are murdered is shot with a night vision camera so that the audience also feels like they are right there with the team setting up those cameras.
Another great technique which was used is that in the end they show how the movie affected the people in the movie. For example, in the end they show that “Private space has been removed from his position at the cove.” After seeing this the audience feels that the villans, that is the fisherman got what they deserved. This really has a deep impact on the audience as it makes them realize that in real life as well evil always pays and it ends the movie on a happy note. There are many various fimling techniques which combine to form a good movie. One of them would be a very popular technique of starting the movie with a part of the ending. The Cove starts with the scene of the team putting the cameras in place. This part was shot with a night vision camera. This technique is very useful as it gets the audience excited and makes them wait for that particular scene to come. Another would be the use of a strong script.The word choice is very good and makes the whole movie very interesting. When the movie starts Ric O’Barry says “the town of Taiji. A little town with a really big secret.” This sentence was a very good sentence to say in the starting. It makes the audience very curious what this secret is. It makes them want to know how they are able to hide it so well and why nobody knows about this. Another example of the strong script would be when Ric O’Barry says “if these fisherman could catch me and kill me they would.” This excites the audience. In addition the whole movie is made like an action movie with real people and a real situation. The movie is somewhat like an Oceans Eleven movie. Similar to that movie The Cove also has a group of people who are shown as the heroes of the movie. The whole movie shows how Ric O’Barry and his are team are the heroes and how the fisherman are the villans. This really appeals to the audience. Even how the different characters are introduced to the audience makes them think like they are the good guys. For example, when Charles Hambleton is being introduced Psihoyos refers to him as an “adrenaline junkie.” He tells us that he was “the sale master on the pirates of the Caribbean” to show us that he has already part of other action movies. They show him riding a boat and coming towards the camera and then they show him on a yacht pulling on a rope which really impresses the audience and makes them believe that he is the guy whose going to make everything right. This makes the audience really excited for the next part of the movie. Some people might argue and say that how they introduce is just to add some glamour to the movie. The fact that Louis Psihoyos refers to their team as an “Ocean’s Eleven” team is also to add glamour to the movie by making a direct connection to a Hollywood movie. They might say that it takes away from the movie. But rather than taking away it adds to the film in the sense that it helps the audience to get a better understanding of the film and the characters. It helps the audience understand why the people in the team are supporting the cause and how they came into the whole picture. Another factor that adds to the film is the fact that Ric O’ Barry is the narrator or the protagonist of the film. He was part of the “evil side.” What that means is that he was part of the people who buy dolphins from places like Taiji and contribute to the dolphin slaughter. He even made a tv show about dolphins. He tells his whole life story and how and why he changed sides. When the audience hears about this change of side the audience feels connected to the movie. They feel that a person whose been on both sides knows best and then they start believing in the cause. They somewhat become a part of their team. This technique was very useful and really helpful in convincing the audience that what they are showing is right. Robert Drew would agree with this statement and he would say that “[for] most documentary film-makers, narration remains a benign and a useful tool for making the kinds of films expected by their audiences” (272). Finally the overall movie is also made really well specially the build up to the climax.
The sequence of the scenes is very well organized and leaves a deep impact on the audience mind and makes sure that the audience is entertained in the whole movie. Initially they show how difficult it was for Ric O’ Barry to get through to the place where the slaughter happened. They show how he called Psihoyos to help him but he also isn’t able to do anything. Then they go to the scene where Psihoyos makes his Ocean’s eleven team and they come. When his team is introduced the audience feels as if that these guys will come and everything will be okay. This excites the audience but when the team meets with failure it really surprises the audience. Then they show how finally a bright idea from Psihoyos helped solve the whole problem and they were finally able to solve the problem. This idea of the team encounters many problems but is still able to shoot the scene really appeals to the audience and gets them …show more content…
involved. Some may argue that the fact that it is a combination of documentary and a thriller takes away focus from the main issue that is the slaughter of dolphins. They might say that it is entertaining but it doesn’t talk more about dolphin slaughter and doesn’t show the facts as they are. The thing that one should realize is that if it was made like a proper documentary and not a combination it would just become one of the hundred documentaries made on dolphin slaughter and no one would pay attention to it. So the fact that it is a combination does not take away from the movie rather adds to it. It gives us all the information and background required for us to understand what is going on in a very entertaining way. The Cove is a very well made movie.
It uses many different techniques to capture the audiences attention to a very sensitive issue. Psihoyos has used techniques to help the audience know what to feel in a particular scene. In some scenes he does it through the use of some particular music. In some cases he does it through shooting the scene from a night vision camera. Another technique that also helps us get a better understanding about the whole scene is the narration. The movie has all the characteristics that an Oscar winning film should have and it definitely deserves and Oscar. The movie points out a very interesting fact that is the combination of documentary and thrillers can definitely
work.
Works Cited
Atkins ,Thomas R. “ Fredrick Wisemans America: Titicut Follies to Primate” . The Documentary Tradition. 2nd edition. Ed Lewis Jacobs. New York.
Drew, Robert. “Narration Can Be a Killer.” Imaging Reality: The Faber Book of Documentary. Eds Kevin Macdonald and Mark Cosins. Boston: Faber and Faber.1998.Print
Nichols, Bill. Introduction to Documentary . 2nd Edition. Bloomington: Indiana University. Press. 2010. Print.
Psihoyos, Louie. The Cove. Toronto: Maple Pictures, 2009. Web. 5th December 2012
"Town Upset Over 'The Cove. '" AsiaOne News. The Yomiuri Shinbun, 27 February 2010. Web. 21 Oct. 2012.