A Review of The Cove

The Cove throws a lot of things into one hat. It is part political and eco-activism, part investigative journalism and even part espionage thriller. Yet, at its core, The Cove is a true-life story about one man’s crusade to redeem his past mistakes. Ric O’Barry was one of the dolphin trainers on the landmark TV show Flipper (popular in the States before TV even arrived in South Africa). According to O’Barry, Flipper played a major role in kick-starting the now multi-billion dollar domesticated dolphin industry, but it was O’Barry’s experience in working so closely with his TV star dolphins that led him to believe that keeping dolphins in activity was both harmful and abusive to them.

Eager to atone for his mistakes, a remorseful O’Barry has since spent his life in actively working to free and protect dolphins. The Cove tells the story of how O’Barry has uncovered a dark secret in a small lagoon near a town called Taiji off the Japanese coast. Behind a wall of barbed wire and a plethora of “Keep Out” signs, and under the cover of night and intimidating guards, it is here that the fishermen of Taiji engage in an unseen hunt for thousands of dolphins. Prevented from seeing what is really happening in “the cove,” O’Barry and a group of activists led by the movie’s director Louie Psihoyos, embark on a covert mission to penetrate its barriers and in so doing they succeed in uncovering horrifying instances of animal abuse and also fairly serious threats to human health.

Although a documentary, The Cove is so expertly done that it manages to keep you on the edge of your seat throughout. Although it makes some difficult to prove assertions about dolphins such as their committing suicide when depressed or having self-awareness, it is still advocacy filmmaking at its best. O’Barry and his team use state-of-the-art equipment (including cameras cleverly disguised as rocks by George Lucas’ Industrial Light and Magic), and they form a kind of “Ocean’s 11” team of experts who use espionage techniques to get at the truth. And when they do, the truth is quite simply terrifying, not only in the cruelty that is displayed to these wonderful animals but also the threat this particular fishing industry has for human health. In selling dolphin meat disguised as whale meat they are exposing people to record levels of mercury poisoning.

The Cove also includes a great many facts about the toothless International Whaling Commission which is failing to protect dolphins properly. It shows how Japan is funding the fishing campaigns of many poorer companies and thereby buying their support in rolling back legislation that does actually protect whales.

All in all, The Cove is full value for winning an Oscar for best documentary. I cannot recommend too highly that you go to see it as soon as you can. The intention of The Cove is clear in that it seeks to expose you to some horrifying details of humanities cruelty and short-sightedness and thereby spurring you into action. I certainly hope The Cove exceeds its own expectations in this regard. Christians have been mandated by Scripture to care for and protect creation, and so getting involved in projects like this is a vital expression of our own faith.

Go and see this movie! 5 stars out of 5 for this absolutely brilliant eco-documentary!

Amongst numerous other awards, The Cove was awarded the IKEA Green Prize at the Rome International Film Festival. Here's a statement from the Jury on why The Cove was chosen for this award:

“for re-writing the documentary genre, transforming it into a cleverly edited film that packs an emotional punch with fast-paced action, scientific analysis and a story of personal redemption. The use of thermal camera shots, meta-language, video-reality and archive footage means this work transcends the glossy image of the natural history documentary. The original, hitherto unexplored theme informs us about a horror perpetrated in a bay in Japan that has repercussions around the world, a global horror that lays bare the cultural consumerism behind live animal shows, coupled with issues surrounding food safety and governmental corruption in the war to control the seas. We left the cinema with the feeling we could do something to dismantle all the bays of horror. Taking on the mantle of responsibility, we shout: No More Coves”

Lewd Clergy, Kill the Boer and Other Sensitivities

As languages develop the meaning of words can change over time. After all, it was within the life-time of my parent’s generation that the word ‘gay’ come to be predominantly used to describe homosexual people rather than happy people.

Words are dynamic, and languages stay alive by adapting and growing according to the context around them. Another example would be the word ‘nice’ which in the 13th century was an insult meaning foolish or stupid. It went through changes in the 18th century with various meanings like wanton, extravagant, elegant, modest, shy or coy. Now of course, it means good, pleasing, thoughtful or kind.

‘Silly’ meant blessed or happy in the 11th century and went through pious, innocent, harmless, and pitiable before ending up as foolish or stupid. My all-time favourite is the word ‘lewd,’ which once meant ignorant and was used to describe anyone who was not a member of the clergy. Personally, I think we should bring back its original meaning sooner rather than later.

A far uglier example would be the South African racial insult ‘k-----‘, a word so effectively used to belittle others that to even write it out in full as an example is considered unacceptable. Use of this word has been actionable in South African courts since Apartheid days in 1976 under the offense of crimen injuria, which is "the unlawful, intentional and serious violation of the dignity of another".

You may not know that this word originally was an Arabic term used to describe white people, or simply anyone who was not of the Abrahamic faith. It was picked up by Europeans and widely used between the 16th and 19th centuries and generally never as an offensive term. In fact, its early South African usage was a neutral term for black southern African people. However, over the 20th century it became commonly used to denigrate black people and now is so loaded with bile and hatred that it is virtually untouchable. With good reason it can be hoped this word will eventually fall out of practice all together.

The point I am trying to make is that words have tremendous history. In other times and rooted in different historical and cultural contexts a word can mean something completely different to what it does now. If you make a living at communicating (like a politician does for example), then it is vital to understand the dynamic nature of words. If you want to have clarity in your message then you need to understand how people generally understand words and phrases.

So why did it take so long for our leaders to understand how a struggle song which includes words like “shoot the boer” might cause offense to others? The argument that the song has a long history associated with the struggle should by no means lend it complete immunity to challenge. As I have pointed out the ‘k-----‘ word itself has a history of neutrality but since it began to be used hurtfully it has rightfully been sidelined. In the same way, if the words of a song, no matter how steeped in struggle history, causes fear and confusion amongst certain South Africans, then surely a government of racial unity should be far more open to ending its use?

Why did it take the unfortunate murder of one of our more infamous ‘boers’ and the ensuing racial hoo-ha for the government to actually consider opening the discussion table around the continued viability of this song? Surely, those in government, many of whom might have been on the receiving end of racial misunderstandings themselves would better understand such potential sensitivities? Rather than blaming the media for misunderstanding its cultural context and accusing them of fear mongering, perhaps our leaders should seek to better understand just how dynamic and powerful words and language are. All South Africans would ultimately benefit from that kind of sensitive and unselfish leadership.

Words change. And so should we.

Christian Scientists Excited by the ‘Genesis Machine'

On Tuesday of this week, the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN)’s Large Hadron Collider (LHC) directed two proton beams into each other to bring scientists one step closer to seeing how the universe may have looked like after its creation. This experiment is part of CERN’s search for the Higgs Boson, a theoretical particle also known as the God particle that scientists believe might give mass to other particles and thus to other objects and creatures.

Guido Tonelli, spokesperson for the Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) experiment said that “We’ll address soon some of the major puzzles of modern physics like the origin of mass, the grand unification of forces and the presence of abundant dark matter in the universe, I expect very exciting times in front of us.”

Christian scientists were largely very excited by how this week’s milestone experiment by the informally nicknamed ‘Genesis Machine’ might lead to noteworthy insights into the creative work of God.

“This experiment is one of the most significant of this third millennium,” stated Dr. Karl W. Giberson of the BioLogos Foundation. Giberson believes that the experiment was an amazing event because it might well lay the foundation for further investigations that could answer some of our deepest questions regarding the universe around us.

Giberson added that “What is most exciting in this experiment is that it lets us push back a bit closer to that mysterious moment almost 14 billion years ago, when our universe emerged in the Big Bang. What the LHC might demonstrate is a piece of the grand puzzle: where does mass come from? If Christians can embrace the Big Bang theory, instead of inventing odd and implausible reasons to reject it, they will be drawn into a most wonderful world of grandeur that will greatly enlarge their concept of God."

Giberson, who is also a professor at a College in the States, is a theistic evolutionist – in other words he believes that classical religious teachings about God can be harmonised with modern scientific understandings.

BioLogos, was founded in 2007 by renowned geneticist (and Christian) Francis Collins, and the organization seeks to emphasise the compatibility of Christian faith with scientific discoveries about the origins of the universe and life.

Over the next 2 years, CERN plans to run further experiments with the aim of assembling enough data to make significant advances in some of these key issues. A vital part of their work will be the systematic search for the Higgs boson with the anticipation of learning far more about the nature and interaction of matter in the early Universe. CERN believes that these experiments might give them insight into the composition of around a quarter of the universe, said the Christian Post.

(Read the full story at http://christianpost.com)

A Review of The Hurt Locker

Does anyone else find it interesting that The Hurt Locker, a movie about the American invasion of Iraq won an Oscar over its main rival, Avatar, which was a movie about an American invasion of a distant planet? That said, The Hurt Locker was widely advertised as being ‘apolitical’ and with America being so polarised between those who support the war and those who don’t, it was probably wise to steer a middle line.

The Hurt Locker attempts this middle line by simply telling the story of 3 people, all team members of a bomb squad. They don’t really get along because James, the new bomb disposal expert is a risk-taking adrenaline junkie who endangers them all. At the beginning of the movie they have less than 40 days to get through before finishing their tour of duty, and James’ fellow squad members are desperate to make it out in one piece.
The Hurt Locker is brilliantly acted with Jeremy Renner, David Morse and Anthony Mackie taking the lead roles. This is not a movie you necessarily enjoy watching because it does its level best to take you into Iraq – it pins you to your seat with the tension of life on the edge in a war-torn country. People die horribly everyday and the movie attempts to immerse its viewers in the hard-core reality of that. Some of the soldiers react by slowly falling apart while others become adrenaline junkies – living for the ‘thrill’ they get out of danger. However, while different people react in different ways, not one of them escapes without being irrevocably changed.

By the way, I don’t think The Hurt Locker succeeded in being ‘apolitical’. Certainly its portrayal of Iraqis is more than a little condescending and dehumanising. While the Americans are not portrayed as being superior in terms of their morals or value systems, they are still more humanely and less stereotypically depicted. In this we are encouraged to follow them, sympathise with them and even root for them to win the various conflicts they engage in. This is probably because The Hurt Locker is telling their particular story but still I still struggle with how a movie about the Iraq war cannot even touch on the many innocent Iraqis who suffer everyday directly because of American presence in their country. You cannot be ‘apolitical’ if you don’t level the playing fields.

The end of the movie focuses on how the irrevocable change that war brings results in soldiers struggling to settle down into the normality of civilian life. James is stripped bare from his experiences, he is emotionally and morally vacant, and totally out of place in his home. In a rather cynical monologue with his toddler son, James tells him that while he loves many things as a young child, the inevitability of life means he will slowly stop loving ‘many things’ until he is eventually left loving only one or two things. James then sadly concludes by stating that he is left loving only one thing, and by that he means the adrenaline thrill of war.

The Hurt Locker does a good job in the way it illustrates how war and violence can strip people of their essential humanity, leaving them unable to properly function in normal environments. There is no doubt that The Hurt Locker is well made and brilliantly acted. Even though I am skeptical of its ‘apolitical’ stance, I do think its messages on many levels are compelling and thought provoking even if they are difficult to view. I do, however, remain unconvinced that this movie was worth an Oscar because I just don’t think it is worth more than 3 stars out of 5. Be warned that there is violence and quite strong language throughout.

Is Incompetent Leadership the Root Cause of South Africa’s Racial Tension?

The scary thing is that until a week or so ago, Eugene Terre’Blanche was irrelevant. From being the leader of an ultra-right wing party in the early 90’s that everyone feared had the potential to seriously derail South Africa’s attempts at unification, Terreblanche gradually sunk into obscurity. The AWB lost popularity as most whites realised that the ‘swart gevaar’ they had been brought up to fear was really not so bad. Under the inspirational leadership of Nelson Mandela, our country managed to steer itself away from civil war and further racial bloodshed. Terre’Blanche’s politics lost impetus because so many South Africans were inspired by Mandela to forgive and to learn to relate to one another despite their fears.

It is highly ironic therefore, that the murder of a political dinosaur who has been living the quiet life for years has served as a fulcrum point for renewed racial tensions. It must be said that this racial tension has been boiling and simmering for months, and Terre’Blanche’s death only lanced a long-festering boil causing all sorts of ugly stuff to come spilling out. While the ANC has been quick to deny it, many are pointing to Julius Malema’s constant use of thinly disguised racial rhetoric as being one of the prime causes of the heightening of South Africa’s racial tension. Over the last 2 months, this column has twice focussed on Malema’s tendency to engage in verbal violence to score political points, and observed that this constant verbal violence all too easily could become something worse. Of course, Malema is not the only one taking the cheap and nasty road to newspaper headlines – opposition party leaders and other community leaders have been quick to respond with their own verbal barbs and insults. Furthermore, lest we forget, Malema only does publicly what so many of us do privately when we tell insulting jokes, or make prejudicial comments about others because of their race, gender or sexuality. In some way, we are all responsible for the festering boil of racial hatred – when we engage in verbal violence to others we play our part in making this world an uglier place.

This is where I remember Mandela and the crucial leadership role he played in making South Africa a more beautiful place. Imagine if you will an average home where two children begin fighting over the same toy. It gets ugly quickly with the toy tug-of-war transforming a playground into a battlefield. Ugly things are said, and before long the children lash out at each other with the inevitable result being tears from both parties. What do good, caring, concerned parents who are concerned with shaping and forming responsible, functional children do in this situation? Well, in a nutshell, they need to provide good leadership. They need to engage with each of their children, punish them if need be, but most importantly, they need to teach their children a better way of disagreeing. They need to teach them to handle disagreements and conflict with grace, integrity and mutual respect.

Is this the root cause of the present racial crisis filling every newspaper - a clear lack of responsible, competent and committed leadership? Is that the difference between how Mandela steered us through so many crises and the present government? Never mind whether Terre’Blanche’s murder was really about race or not, it is clearly a wake-up call for us all and it should be a serious wake-up call for those responsible for leading this country. Surely, they should be setting the tone for thoughtful and respectful dialogues instead of the gutter politics they allow their members to engage in? The leadership of our country have seemed largely disinterested and frankly, incapable in guiding their younger and more immature “children” through what has become a quagmire of human ugliness. This present mess we find ourselves in should have been firmly dealt with months ago.

This present crisis is probably nothing more than a serious wake-up call but let us hope it is responded to wisely and proactively because it could easily become something worse. The good thing about a boil being lanced is that it does bring the ugliness out into the open and gives the wound a chance to heal. The leadership has been poor up to this point, yet this remains an ideal opportunity for inspirational figures to step in and help South Africans negotiate their differences in a way that will be a whole lot more life-giving for all concerned.

When Love Is Hard

“Woman, 77, attacked with spades.” “Hijackers assault man, take car.” “Woman swops girl for cocaine.” “Farm attacks: Costs mounts.”

It doesn’t take much more than common sense to realise that loving others is very, very hard to do. For example, just reading newspaper headlines like those above will give you dozens of reasons NOT to love others. We read of despicable actions by criminals, or ill-considered statements from community leaders that leave us feeling more than a little threatened and abused. Inside we feel nothing like love for them, but only anger and frustration.

Well, Jesus never said that loving others would be easy. The Gospels teach us that Jesus challenged people to love not just their neighbours, but also their enemies, and to love not just their friends but also strangers. There is just no way to get around it – Jesus wants his followers to enter the world equipped primarily with his love. This means, for example, when we read or hear about someone who drives us crazy because of their arrogance, prejudice, or cruelty, that Jesus wants us to learn to love them.

Yes, even them.

Eugene Peterson once wrote that “Relationships form part of the very fabric of redemption.” What Peterson meant by this is that God uses the warp and woof, ins and outs, ups and downs, victories and failures, laughter and tears of relationships to work his saving power into us – to knead it into the dough of our souls if that makes any sense.

You see whether we like it or not relationships change us. Think about any significant relationship that you have, whether it is a positive and life-affirming one, or a negative one say with a grumpy, domineering boss. Think about how much that relationship takes control of your day, how it affects what you think about and how you react to things.

Sin, really, is a failure to love. There is this scene in the movie ‘Amazing Grace’ where the reformed slave trader John Newton talks about his slaving activities and describes his fellow slave traders in the following way: “We were apes and they were human.”

What he meant by this is that his actions in treating his fellow human beings as less than human actually ended up making him less of a functioning person. Failing to love dehumanises us; it makes us less, but conversely learning to love and acts of love, especially when they are sacrificial and hard to do, makes us somehow more than we were before.

Our greatest purpose in life is to love each other just like God loved us through Jesus.

Everyone talks about achieving great things with their lives. And by that they mean fulfilling the potential of their gifts and talents. Yet, in God’s eyes you achieve great things when you love – when you seek to fulfil the full potential of your spirit and character.

The good news is that because relationships affects all of us so much, our loving actions can be passed along in quite amazing ways through our complex web of inter-relationships. This means that loving others, if healthily and passionately pursued, will not only transform us but also our surrounding social dimensions. It could even possibly change some of those news headlines which drive us crazy every week.

(The headlines above are taken from News24.com, dated 25-03-2010).

A Review of Everybody's Fine

This movie got panned by critics overseas, and was largely ignored by South Africans but for the life of me I can’t work out why. Its critics lambasted it for being overly sentimental and having a too-obvious plot with poor character development, and while I can appreciate the validity of these criticisms, I would still maintain the strengths far outweigh the weaknesses.

Everybody’s Fine is a remake of an Italian movie, and is a heartfelt, sad and yet ultimately redeeming comedy-drama. Robert De Niro is superb as Frank, a recently widowed father of four who sets out on a road trip to reconnect with his children. His life as a blue collar worker (he painted pvc onto phone lines) has led to him suffering from a debilitation of the lungs. However, the sacrificial labours of his life were gladly offered because he was so determined to provide for his family and allow his children to succeed. Although his medical condition prevents him from flying, Frank’s disappointment that all four children cancelled on a family visit leads to him braving the bus and rail networks of the U.S.

The double play of Frank’s work with telephone wires and his lack of connection with his children is used throughout. Everybody’s Fine tries hard to use visual ‘cinema noveau’ moments to promote its message, and I think these can be appreciated more often than not. Frank’s surprise visits are not well received by his children at all, and his journey really ‘surprises’ everyone because he finds his children are not nearly as successful as he was led to believe. It seems that the pressure of his own hard work in providing for them, as well as his constant admonishments for them to succeed, has resulted in each of them deeply fearing letting him down. This pressure created a fundamental lack of connection with Frank because each and every single one of them was led to lie to him in some way about their work or lifestyle.

This is exactly where the movie packs a serious punch ... in its message. For as Frank seeks to take on his late wife’s role of keeping the children together, they all discover uncomfortable truths about themselves. Frank realises that only providing for his family as a father is not enough, but that they also need his affirmation and acceptance as well. He realises that all he really wants for them is not success but happiness – to be more fully themselves and to be content and find meaning in their work and relationships.

Anyone who has been brought up in the home of a ‘baby-boomer’ would appreciate this movie. So many today have similarly strained relationships with their fathers where the pressure to be successful has sometimes caused intense disharmony. More than this so many have experienced fathers who have been good providers, but perhaps have not been emotionally (or spiritually) available to mentor, love and guide. Everybody’s Fine is extremely relevant in this regard.

A great moment of loss is experienced towards the end of the movie, which ultimately forces the family to draw closer together in love and support. Everybody’s Fine is sad, funny, touching and deeply redemptive. It might get a little soppy, and the characters of the children might be a little weak, but De Niro’s acting and the strong realism of the relationships means that the overall message is empathically carried.

It is the kind of movie which makes you want to call up your own parents, or gather up your children in your arms and hug them, and if this is the only reminder you carry away with you then it is well worth it. Although the ending is perhaps a little too neat, it is still an excellent reminder that if we truly seek to engage with our loved ones without forcing our own personal agendas on them, then love can win through even a lifetime of mistakes.