23,000 Dolphins are slaughtered each year in a hidden cove in Taiji, Japan. The Japanese government covers it up. No one could get in.
Until now.
[UPDATE: Dolphin Slaughter in Taiji's 'Cove' Suspended]!
The Cove exposes an atrocity of unimaginable brutality. The dolphin slaughter depicted here is committed yearly and without knowledge of the general Japanese public, even though they could be buying highly-toxic mercury-laden dolphin meat disguised as fish from their local supermarkets.
Barred access to the site, the film crew (which includes most notably the man who trained Flipper, Richard O’Barry) was forced to utilize covert military tactics and equipment, including thermal heat sensors and the help of two world-class free divers, to accomplish their mission.
The Cove is activist film at it’s finest: exposing this dirty-little-secret despite systematic intimidation and institutional attempts to cover it up. The film is part of the documentary selection for this year’s Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah.
>> See Also: Japan Accuses Animal Planet of EcoTerrorism Prior to “Whale Wars” Premiere
To learn more and take action, visit the campaign website: savejapandolphins.com. The film won’t be available to the public until post-festival distribution, so keep your eye out for it later in the year.
Also read more at nymag.com.
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[Update 1/25/09]: The Cove has received the Audience Award for U.S. Documentary at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival.
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Clayton
In a past life, Clayton was a professional blogger and editor of Gas 2.0, Important Media’s blog covering the future of sustainable transportation. He was also the Managing Editor for GO Media, the predecessor to Important Media.
91 Responses to The Cove: Sundance Film Exposes Japanese Dolphin Slaughter in Grisly Footage
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Charles Hambleton, producer of award-winning The Cove, will be guesting on the YouTube channel GreenopolisTV. Watch this video for more info: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wgai3XjhVQ.
I’m sorry but with all the “Green” crap that’s out there…..more than half of it being just an agenda for those in places of power….Agenda 21, climategate, etc.. I am a sceptic….rather be a sceptic than gullible. Any group that would manipulate the emotions of kids into feeling guilty by teaching propaganda under the guise of education has lost my respect. It’s sad. Green organizations need to clean up their act. They are guilty of polluting young minds with lies.
Can we heard the human joe whom siad said on January 20th, 2009 at 5:32 pm
“I personally dont care what meat it is just as long as it taste good. how dare these people try to force their beliefs on the japanese people”
into a cove and let him experience the agony that he obviously care nothing about.
Some peoples souls are not worth the flesh in witch they are encased! Personally, i herald the film and the outcome that has arrived from it!!!!
You are a horrible human being, how are the people against this forcing their beliefs on the japanese!??? They are the ones lying about what kind of meat they are selling! They are lying because they know what they are doing is wrong!!! You are obviously of low self esteem when you say that you dont care what kind of meat it is that you are eating as long as it tastes good. SO if i cooked up human meat and gave it to you to eat and it tasted good then I told you it was human meat you wouldnt care? Not to mention this dolphin meat is being disguised as other fish and it is toxic because of the high levels of mercury. People have the right to know what they are eating!!! Also the horrible slaughter that these dolphins go through, YOU obviously have a sick uncaring mind and soul and the majority of people dont care what scum like you think anyway.
I have just finished watching this documentary and I can not find words to express the absolute distruction of an animal, it was distressing, what can we do as humans of the same planet to stop this..
its not a beilife why dont you watch the movie for yourself they are horrible for what they are doing and need to be stopped before we have another extinction!
Azrael… I am an American Republican. I am on this site. I think the slaughter of these dolphins is just a horrible horrible thing.
My husband and I watched The Cove last night and excuse me if a kick a Japanese fisherman in the balls (shins are too forgiving). I am disgusted and appalled beyond words. I will likely boycott sushi just out of principal. What can we do to help stop this absolute tragety other than not going to Sea World? Laura from Long Beach
@Joe, puffer fish tastes great. Especially if you make it yourself.
Let us be their voice – stop the killing, the butchering, the absolute terror.
Please check out our website and follow the links there, sign petitions, start websites, educate others, please be their voice – we will be heard.
I just watched “The Cove.” I really didn’t know anything about this and I was truly disturbed after I watched this documentary……really digusting that the government would cover something like this up. To watch these dolphins being slaughtered like that was really sick…what is wrong with this people??? Not to mention the people that are being exposed to all the high levels of mercury….just digusting!
My vote is for sustainable consumption using humane practices.
Lest, its SOYLENT GREEN for ya’ll
)
Sheer hypocrisy !!
Its an impressive documentary attempt .. despite the biased presentation.
Not award-worthy though.
OK. Its against common-sense to eat DOLPHINS. They are toxic.
Animal cruelty is a different issue altogether. All the cows and chickens can only wonder how lucky these Taiji dolphins have been.
None of the other reasons hold water.
Its the circle of life.
Wow!! too cruel! unbelievable!!
I also love the cattle as my good friend,
but in the world every people eat beef , I hate it!
We have to stop killing any animals, and plants!!
We should make science technology more advanced and
realize that all food is chemical supplement!
I’m Indian stop breeding our scared cows and eatting them now! rocky mountain oysters! wtf is wrong with you people you sick monsters
This time, drop it on Tokyo!
@Clayton:
I am seriously doubting about your opinion that no other place in japan hunts dolphins.
You said Japan exploits loopholes in IWC in order to hunt cetaceans, which is true, they also try to gather other pro- hunting members within the International Whaling Commission. Recently Japan threatened to step back from the Commission, why would you think… Since 2005 they started hunting even more on minke whales for ‘scientific purposes’ they claimed. Tsukiji market is full of whales and dolphins. Would it only be from the litlle cove in Taiji you think??
Forgive me my english, it’s not my motherlanguage
The cove was only now open to public at our annual filmfestival, so my comment is pretty late. Still, I had to say this.
Vanessa
Joe.
perhaps it is the concentrations of mercury you should worry about that are in the dolphins.bio-accumulation…
and they aren’t pressing their opinions on the Japanese they simply showing what has been hidden from them by their government.
Join the cause at Facebook…Stop the Brutal Slaughter of Dolphins in Taiji, Japan…as revealed by The Cove, the movie.
Join the cause…Spread the Word!…Kick it up!!!
Help clear the red waters of Taiji, Japan NOW!
join the cause at:
http://apps.facebook.com/causes/326919?m=f951a7e5
Mega thanks to planetsave.com for allowing this comment!
Make a difference! Join the cause! Tweet the cause link!
JB
joe,
I can’t believe you would make such comment on this site. Embarrasing!
Joe,
U R an IDIOT! You shouldn’t be on this green site.
Glad this film was made and glad it is being discussed.
I live in Japan and let me just add a few points – Japanese people DO NOT eat dolphin meat. There are 120 million people here and they eat normal things. The slaughter of 23,000 dolphins at Taiji at this event, once a year, is not going to feed the general population. Dolphin meat is not on the menu at MacDonalds in Tokyo if that’s what you thought.
The racist comments on this thread are not going to help a single dolphin. Instead it may very well be the very reason why this issue is so difficult to debate in Japan. People here are just like people everywhere, and they DO NOT like to be told what to do or what to eat. What if a bunch of clever Japanese activists filmed the brutal cattle slaugther in the US, do you think that would change US meat eating habits or US government policy? How many millions of cattle and pigs are slaughtered every day just because some of you prefer to eat meat? Google for “downer cattle” if you need facts that have been covered up for many years in the US.
Again, this is all terrible slaughter, and it deserves to be better known, and hopefully stopped, thanks for posting about it.
I would like to see this film. I am aware that the Chinese government covered up the melamine incident, and not the Japanese government, but am equally aware of the whale hunting by the Japanese. Interesting.
Thank God for those who had the tenacity and courage to expose this truth. We are all shamed and lessened as humans when any human commits such horrible acts, especially towards a species which has been so good to us humans.
Thank God for the courage and tenacity of those who brought this truth to light. It shames us as humans when any of us commit such horrible acts, especially to a species which has been so good to us.
i just heard about this – what our grief is often is our savior – thank you for bringing this to the light of the public – i will talk about this in my next work –
let us all bring light to the dark in any way we can.
What is it with the Japanese and their need to destroy this planet? Slaughtering whales, dolphins, even their own people? They spike baby food with melamine and turn the waters blood red by poluting them to the point where nothing can live in it?? What is wrong with this culture? They need to be stopped.
I saw the movie and there are some issues that need to be discussed.
1. Most Japaneese do not eat dolphin – it is packaged as whale meat and the public is decieved.
2. The allowable amount of mercury (Japanese govt) is .04 ppm, dolphins because they are on the top of the food chain contain 2000 ppm.
3. It is a totally wasteful brutal killing and capturing process.
By the way, it’s Cetaceans or Cetacea. (“E” does not follow the “T”)
That said, let’s make what Kierkegaard might call a teleological suspension of the ethical in regard to the relative merits of intellectual functioning in any of these critters.
Assuming that it is within our rights/responsibilities/privileges to consume dolphins, then isn’t it within our range of responsibilities to kill them humanely? Yes, there is great thought given to how we slaughter animals today. Let’s give this modest attention.
Japan is not a third world country, and it’s not appropriate for the modern world to encourage the consumption of toxic chemicals by its citizens.
The Japanese aren’t stupid. The information brought out by this body of work is likely to eliminate these despicable events.
The Japanese love whale meat. The ending of this cetacean rodeo will put more pressure on whale killing. More’s the pity.
And, finally, let’s do think about the food chain again. The condition of our oceans is awful, and the evidence of that is abundant.
Let’s try to think ahead at least 100 years……for a change.
I saw The Cove last evening at The Nantucket Film Festival, in Massachusetts and it was the best documentary I have ever seen. The movie, although heartwrenching, captivates the audience immediately and brings us to a point of wanting to help stop put an end to the needless brutality going on in Taiji, Japan. I applaude all the activists for their courage and endurance to shed the ugly light on The Cove…this movie will make a difference and anyone that goes to see it will want to help make a difference as well. Thank you for your amazing energy!! I will do all that I can to support this horrific, needless brutality.
今日フィルムフェステイバルで”cove”を見ました．The Japanese are heartless. と思われてもしかたがないとおもいます。イルカが赤ちゃんイルカも含めてとても残酷に殺されて、死にきれないイルカたちがのたうち回る血の海の中をシュノーケルをつけた漁師が潜り、私はずいぶんと長いこと感じなかった怒りに震える感情を覚えました．日本の人々に伝えようと思います．太地でなにがおきているのかを。
I just saw the film “Cove ” at the film festival at Maui film festioval. I am Japanese. I think people think “Japanese are heartless”after seeing this film.Many of dolphins kills really cruel way includs baby dolphins, they suffer a lot,,,, the cove turn to red color by the blood of dolphins, and fisherman swim with snorkel in the blood. Their heart and emotion are numbed. I tell this about Japanese people. Japanese must know what is happening, and should stop eat toxic dolphin meat.
@fred: I like to promote causes I think are important. Profit doesn’t have anything to do with it.
The first sentence tells you this information lacks objectivity and is designed to generate a profit for those promoting it:
“The Cove exposes an atrocity of unimaginable brutality.”
very effective marketing, but IMO sleezy.
I have just seen the film at the Sydney Film Festival and whilst I thought it was just plain horrific, it should be required (compulsory) watching for everyone, not just those in Japan but all over the world. What a disgrace – if I was Japanese I would hang my head in shame, except that I suspect most Japanese are totally unaware of this vile slaughter going on.
I also think they have Buckley’s chance of ever seeing it in Japan – money can arrange all things
Absolutely horrified that this is going on … and I was devastated at the distress of the dolphins racing around in a sea of blood, obviously terrified.
And what for? Nobody in their right mind would eat any flesh containing so much mercury, so why is the killing so widespread if the flesh is not only inedible but also toxic?
But a bloody good doco nevertheless and extremely well done.
Dolphin meat is the most toxic thing you can eat. Japanese citizens who do not know about this are being literally poisoned. This needs to stop. For the dolphins and the humans.
I think it is a horrible tragedy being done on these poor innocent creatures not to mention their incredible intelligence. Something needs to be done and if the japanese think that this will forever go on and never be stopped! boy are they in for a surprise
Help! I cannot find any reference to the “Greek Era”
@Bill Campbell responds to Azrael’s original message are in (parentheses)
the killing of animals for food is just that. the killing of animals for food. unless you plan to protest every single form of human animal consumption, your being up in arms over this “senseless” slaughter is hypocritical at best, and just plain self-righteous arrogance otherwise. (So, if I cannot protest every single form of human animal consumption, then I should just shut up, or I may risk seeming hypocritical, self righteous, or arrogant, hmmm, sounds like you prefer an all or nothing approach. So, if I follow your logic, I have to protest every single form of “human animal consumption” or I have lost any right to call this or any slaughter “senseless” even if it involves a mercury laden animal being sold as food to unwitting consumers. Spotty logic Azrael.)
The only problem here is the feeding of contaminated meat too an unsuspecting populace. (If you think this is the only problem here, I think you may have a larger problem.)
There is no such thing as universal HUMAN ethics, if you believe so, than you have not traveled outside of the bubble that is North America (I have, and I see you did not read what I wrote carefully, I never said “universal HUMAN ethics”). There are things that we here in the west believe SHOULD be universal values – Azreal’s parentheses: such as the emancipation of woman, equality under the rule of law regardless of affiliation or origin– however us believing them does not necessarily make them so –Azreal’s parentheses:i personally think the rest of the world would benefit, but it’s their choice not ours. haven’t you Americans LEARNED over the last few years what happens when you decide to import your way of living abroad???–
(Azrael, wake up. Most citizens play a minor role in exporting a country’s “way of living” abroad. Exporting a “way of living” is most forcefully done by corporations, politicians, governments and militaries, not simply “you Americans”.)
As for your idiotic assertion that somehow the death of a bunch of porpoises, is in any way comparable to the torture or oppression of our fellow humans, well sir I simply don’t have the words to describe the contempt you engender.
( I compare what some would see as cruelty involving humans and dolphins to what some would see as cruelty involving humans and humans, and you ‘engender contempt’ because I dare compare the two situations…Please, stop engendering over a simple comparison, you might get an ulcer.)
as for the rest, well, you seem to keep trying to tie the contamination of the food into all your other arguments when they are separate issues. (these issues are tied together: they are separate, but they are also connected) IF these dolphins were not contaminated with a poisonous substance, there would be no problem with this scenario what so ever (Not for you anyway). however I am willing to bet, all of you would still be just as upset over it. (Note to Azrael: don’t bet on blanket statements regarding your perception of the relative levels of “upsetness” experienced by “all” of these people you do not know.)
finally, as to being an asshole, yes and no (make up your mind). No i am not an asshole regardless of the abruptness (rudeness? nastiness?) of my language, however the breathtaking ignorance and self-righteousness displayed even in the most eloquent of responses (Any of these responses written by idiots?) from those who peruse this page leaves me with no incentive to do anything (I kind of wish you’d stopped this sentence here) other than respond in the most blunt (read dull) and shocking (oooh…shocking) manner possible. so in that sense Yes I am an Asshole, but YOU sir, are still an Idiot.
-Azrael
(Ok Azrael, You sir, think I am an idiot, and I sir, think you’re an Asshole, and a bit of an Idiot, and yet we can both be compared to dolphins: we’re live born, self aware, air breathing, warm blooded mammals: so go easy on the contempt engendering there, Azrael, earth mammal.) (-Bill)