Blackfish and the Truth About Seaworld

    There is really something to say about the moment you find out that the place you always dreamed of visiting or even working at someday has been lying to everyone for years. The documentary "Blackfish" brings up this point by shedding light on all of the truths that contradict's SeaWorld's "mission". If you look at SeaWorld's mission statement, at the very top it says "To work with purpose and passion on behalf of wildlife and habitats worldwide, encouraging sustainable solutions through support of species research, animal rescue and rehabilitation and conservation education."
The full mission statement can be read here.

Tilikum the 12,000 lb. Killer Whale

   Blackfish focuses mainly on one orca in particular, Tilikum, the 12,000 pound, 32 year old orca that is currently being housed at SeaWorld, Orlando. Tilikum has been involved in 3 trainer deaths including the death of head trainer, Dawn Branchau, on February 24, 2010. The media and even SeaWorld reps, said her death was her own fault or simply a trainer error, but Blackfish reveals the fact that it couldn't have been her fault, and was a psychosis of Tilikum himself. The film discusses all the reasons why animals such as whales and dolphins should never be held captive, because they are much smarter than the average animal. In May of this year, India's Ministry of Environment and Forests but a ban on cetacean captivity (whales, dolphins, porpoises) because they believe them to be "Non-human persons".

   The film touches on the lies that SeaWorld tells its customers, and the fact that they don't use the animals for education purposes, but rather for entertainment purposes. The SeaWorld that claims to "educate" people, in fact, tells the public lies such as the reason for the whales' floppy dorsel fin, and the life span of an orca. They tell the customers that a large percentage of whales get the floppy fin as a result of age, when in the wild less than 1 percent of all whales have that floppy fin. They also tell them that the average lifespan of an orca in the wild is about 20 years, and that live longer in captivity, up to 30 years. Scientists have recorded that orcas can live about the same as a human lifespan, 80 years. All of these things combined prove that SeaWorld is definitely trying to hide the fact that their ways of using these animals for entertainment purposes is tired and completely barbaric. This list of 10 things you didn't know about SeaWorld covers a lot of points that "Blackfish" brings up.

   I really think that everyone needs to see this film and see the brutality and cruelty in the treatment of these animals. It may not seem inhumane on the outside, but when you get down to the gritty details you wonder why our society thinks this is ok and has let it go on for all these decades. These creatures need to be out in the wild, where they can swim for miles and miles on end, not in a tank that to them, is the size of a bathtub.

   This film also gives many points of view from all different people that have been involved in the lives of these creatures, ranging from former seaworld trainers, to the man who assisted in the capturing of killer whales, and also researchers of orcas. Its a well rounded film with endless points about the psychological state of whales in captivity and that these primitive practices need to be rid from SeaWorlds all over. I highly recommend it to anyone. Two thumbs WAY up.

Here is the trailer.

Similar documentaries that I also loved:

The Cove

Sharkwater