The Walrus and the Whistleblower

I NEVER write reviews but this documentary beggers belief. I was enjoying it until I saw him cooking steaks,he admitted he was a hypocrite but this sadly isn't enough,he fights for captive animals but only the ones HE chooses,switched it off after this.

The supposed protagonist is pretty egotistical and incredibly narcissistic- he comes across as an antagonist for portions of the doc, and you have a hard time deciding who to root for/against.

It's not difficult to understand that politicians are motivated by money and ego, but it seems like Mr Demers may suffer similar afflictions.

At the heart of this are these poor creatures forced to endure the pain and suffering, and it's a gross miscarriage of humanity that we allow this nonsense to continue, but it stands to reason that in order to be compassionate we need to demand the closure of these 'parks' and no more animals in captivity. Especially at the whims of families supposedly clamoring for entertainment; how fun is it to watch an animal perform a trick for food?

If you really want to make a permanent difference, find a better voice for these animals that doesn't crave attention for ME and focuses solely on the lives of the animals.

There will be plenty of reviews that analyze this film from a technical standpoint, without diving much into what actually makes this a wonderful film. It's pretty simple, they outline Phil Demers' fight, and Marinelands way of silencing him.

Phil will never be silenced. As easy as that. Marineland is basically an heartless corporation at its core that does not actually care for anything in that park other than themselves....and their wallets of course.

You're either on the side of compassion - which means you care for these intelligent beings and wish for them to have never been captive in the first place, or you're on the side of ignorance - meaning you're being willfully Ignorant to the horrors that take place behind the walls of that "park" and believe this is necessary to save animals. These animals didn't need saving. They were stolen from their homes. Or you are lacking any and all compassion for a living being you believe is solely put on this Earth to entertain you.

The documentary brings chills and emotion and you truly feel sadness throughout the timeline of the film as they bring up countless instances of abuse, death, and neglect. One scene that will stick with me is when Zeus, a Walrus, is confirmed to have died. Marineland says there was no sign of health problems or neglect. Then we see footage of a clearly skinny, malnutritioned, and probably deeply depressed ocean animal living in a cement cage with chipped paint on the hard cement floor. Last time I checked, the only people who should be in cages are criminals, who committed acts against the law, not animals who have zero understanding as to why they are not in their natural habitat, some of which will never even know what their natural habitat should be..

Give it a watch. Whether you're an animal activist, someone who hates seeing animals treated so poorly, or one of the willfully ignorant folks who may not understand the horrors taking place. You'll either watch and confirm your belief and continue to fight against this evil, or maybe your willful ignorance will be broken through and you'll see the truth.

Greetings again from the darkness. Is this Canada's answer to the ground-breaking documentary BLACKFISH (2013), which destroyed SeaWorld's status as wholesome family entertainment? Well, kinda sorta. MarineLand is the popular amusement park located in Niagara Falls, Canada. It was founded in 1961 by John Holer, a former circus animal trainer, and has a catchy jingle known by most Canadians: "Everyone loves MarineLand!"

This is the first feature length documentary for director Nathalie Bibeau, and rather than structure as an expose' (like BLACKFISH), this comes across as more of a psychological profile of Phil Demers, a former trainer at MarineLand, and the titular "whistleblower". In 2012, he quit his job at the park and began going public with reports of the mistreatment of animals, in particular a walrus named Smooshi that Demers personally trained. He took to social media to make his case, and garnered thousands of followers as @WalrusWhisperer.

The park's owner, John Holer, is referred to as 'The King of Niagara' and is cast as the villain to Demers' crusading hero. As Demers' social media generated more attention and he became involved with anti-captivity protesters outside the park, MarineLand filed a $1.5 million lawsuit against Demers, claiming he was "plotting to steal a walrus". Now I'm no legal expert, but I would guess the number of lawsuits that mention a walrus is actually quite low, and it would be a bit humorous were it not for the ongoing mistreatment of animals.

Director Bibeau includes some archival footage of Demers and Smooshi inside MarineLand, and throughout the film there are clips showing animals and other trainers, although we are never really sure of the timeline. A significant portion of the time is spent with Demers (seen jogging and eating ice cream?) and his partner Christine, also a former MarineLand trainer, as they worry about the media attention and the financial implications of this legal battle.

Canadian politics and the economic impact of the fight against MarineLand collide, and we see and hear some of the dialogue that occurs between lawmakers and activists. We are also witness to an interesting conflict between the anti-captivity protesters and Demers, as he admits to not being a Vegan (eating steak makes him feel good). So he's both an insider and outsider, as his passion for saving the park animals from drugs and food deprivation for training is admired, while his dietary preferences are most assuredly not.

MarineLand did not participate in the film, so what we have are Demers' statements and passion, and the video clips. There is little doubt that animal abuse is occurring at the park, and director Bibeau does allow a most interesting comparison: thousands of paying customers vs the hand full of protesters. An often emotional Demers keeps our attention for most of the movie, but whether he's enough for a full length documentary that lacks a true finale, is questionable. What would he do if granted custody of Smooshi? And why is his approach lacking in structure and organization? It often plays as one guy trying to correct a wrong while lacking a plan. To its credit, the film references the Lewis Carroll poem, The Walrus and the Carpenter, "The time has come, the Walrus said, to talk of many things." Animal rights is an ongoing issue, and ... #SaveSmooshi Theatrical release on October 9, 2020 and On Demand November 24, 2020