Blackfish (2013)

  Human beings are the dominant species on the planet.  That is a fact.  However, that tends to insulate humans from recognizing the sentience of other creatures.  All mammals are sentient, according to neuroscientists.  That means that all mammals exhibit the ability to feel, perceive, and experience themselves as a distinct entity.  Whales of all species have been known to show distinct personalities as individuals.  Whales have unique languages and strong social bonds but they are difficult to study in the wild (for obvious reasons) and have remained shrouded in mystery for a lot of people.

That's why SeaWorld and places like it seem like such good ideas.  It seems super educational to bring people who would never be able to see a whale in the wild to a place where they can see, hear, and experience the true majesty of these incredible creatures while also being entertained.  Except no.

Based ostensibly around the tragic (and definitely preventable) death of trainer Dawn Brancheau, this documentary is more a searing indictment of human greed than anything else.  Tilikum, the murderous Orca, had documented issues with aggression and was linked to the death of at least one other person.  This was covered up by park management as he was still a very bankable star and a reliable stud.  Even after all the bad publicity, the lawsuits, and this very documentary, Tilikum was still being kept for breeding purposes until his death in 2017.

While I was watching this film, I couldn't help but wonder how this narrative would play if Tilikum were accorded the same assumption of inner awareness as a human.  Tell me how this story strikes you:  A boy is kidnapped from his family at a young age, witnessing the deaths of other family members during the process.  He is moved in the dark to a small facility and placed with other, older kids who don't speak the same language.  These kids have been in the system a while and begin to bully him.  They are forced to perform as entertainment for the crowds that see them.  At night, he and his cellmates are forced into a windowless metal box with not even enough room to turn around.  When they rebel, food is withheld.  Tilikum grows into a large teen, dwarfing his two cellmates and taking up even more space in this tiny room.  Resentful, the bullying continues unchecked.  Tilikum is covered in scars from head to foot.  Subjected to constant abuse and still unable to communicate with either his cellmates or his jailers, Tilikum attacks a handler.  An investigation is held but Tilikum is released with a lack of evidence.  He is later transferred with no mention of the incident to a different facility.  The process begins again.  He is abused, isolated, and only allowed interaction in exchange for food.  He is hungry all the time.  And growing even larger.  And then one day, during a performance, a miscommunication.  A reward duly earned is withheld by his trainer.  And he kills her.

Does that not sound like a serial killer in training?  How many narratives of kids in foster care, of detained children, start exactly like this?  Trauma, bullying, abuse, isolation, and withholding of affection cause severe psychological scarring.  Now imagine that in the body of a 14,000-lb predator.  That's what SeaWorld allowed its employees to interact with on a daily basis.  Now realize that SeaWorld owns 23 killer whales in the same conditions.  Many of whom are descended from Tilikum.  If that doesn't horrify you, you haven't been paying attention.