Blackfish

Name: Blackfish
Genre: Drama, Documentary
Released: July 19, 2013
Duration: 83 min
Rating: 83
Cast: Dave Duffus, Dean Gomersall, Samantha Berg, Tilikum

2013

METASCORE

Universal acclaim based on 33 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Universal acclaim based on 138 Ratings

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8.2

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8.2	User Score Universal acclaim based on 138 Ratings

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Blackfish

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Movie Details & Credits

Magnolia Pictures | Release Date: July 19, 2013 | PG-13

Starring: Dave Duffus, Dean Gomersall, Samantha Berg, Tilikum

Summary: While in captivity, Tilikum, a performing killer whale, has been responsible for the deaths of three people, including a top orca trainer. Blackfish shows the sometimes devastating consequences of capturing and confining such intelligent and sentient creatures.

Director: Gabriela Cowperthwaite

Genre(s): Drama, Documentary

Rating: PG-13

Runtime: 83 min

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Awards & Rankings

23	#23 Best Movie of 2013

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Critic Reviews

100

Steve Persall

Aug 15, 2013

Director Gabriela Cowperthwaite creates a fascinating character study of Tilikum, part of a revered species without a single confirmed kill of a human in the wild. Captivity is where Blackfish's evidence continually points the blame for Tilikum's deadly behavior. Read full review

100

Justin Chang

Jun 4, 2013

Righteous, captivating and entirely successful as single-issue-focused documentaries go, Gabriela Cowperthwaite’s film draws on startling video footage and testimonies from former orca trainers, building an authoritative argument on behalf of this majestic species. Read full review

Alan Scherstuhl

Jul 16, 2013

The movie is revealing, wrenching, and important, a reminder that what feels wrong in our gut—the effort to turn free-roaming and unknowable beasts into caged vaudevillians—is always worth investigating. Read full review

Joshua Rothkopf

Jul 16, 2013

Blackfish, a troubling exposé of Sea World’s hazardous entertainment trade, does much to restore a realistic sense of danger, interviewing former park workers who detail their shoddy, nonscientific training, and chronicling the much-suppressed history of whale-on-human violence. Read full review

The Telegraph Jenny McCartney

Aug 3, 2013

As an indictment of the industry, this is strong stuff. Read full review

Peter Rainer

Jul 19, 2013

One glaring question the film doesn’t raise: Why, given his history, is Tilikum still entertaining in sea parks? Read full review

Geoff Pevere

Jul 18, 2013

As more than one orca expert points out in the film, when you take a creature born to roam thousands of miles of open water and stick it in a pool to do tricks, there’s going to be some behavioural blowback. In Tilikum’s case, it’s actually described as a form of induced “psychosis.” Read full review

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User Reviews

swetepi

Jul 20, 2013

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. excellent documentary exposing the harsh brutality of SeaWorld who ruthlessly abuses Orcas and hides what they are doing to the public. Reveals how SeaWorld negligently exposes naive trainers to fatally dangerous situations in which several young trainers have lost their lives.… Expand

7 of 8 users found this helpful71

Henry_b1

Feb 12, 2017

An excellent and riveting documentary that covers all bases - that's all that there is to say! I really enjoyed the watch and it made me think and contemplate.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

jfk049

Jan 4, 2014

An effective piece of filmmaking. I now want to do something to help these beautiful giants. There's so much disturbing evidence displayed here to show the cruelty inflicted on these creatures, as well as a real understanding of the orca's emotional intellect and sense of family, thatAn effective piece of filmmaking. I now want to do something to help these beautiful giants. There's so much disturbing evidence displayed here to show the cruelty inflicted on these creatures, as well as a real understanding of the orca's emotional intellect and sense of family, that you can't walk away from this and not be affected. Which is what all good documentaries are supposed to do. Well done.… Expand

4 of 4 users found this helpful40

imconorirl

Apr 30, 2020

This film made me really sad for multiple reasons. It's really good though and I think that most people should watch it at least once.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

BrianMcCritic

Dec 31, 2013

This is a devastating look at how these Killer Whales are treated. This was a difficult watch with many tears shed for these majestic creatures. I know this has affected Sea World's business and rightfully so. A-

2 of 3 users found this helpful21

cmyk

Dec 23, 2013

To be honest, this documentary proved to be much more political than what the brief summaries provided on the streaming website let on (I watched this on Netflix), so a word of caution to those who thought it was simply another nature documentary. It's pretty narrow in terms of opinionsTo be honest, this documentary proved to be much more political than what the brief summaries provided on the streaming website let on (I watched this on Netflix), so a word of caution to those who thought it was simply another nature documentary. It's pretty narrow in terms of opinions provided on the subject, providing very little counterargument, but is informative and no less eyeopening to what goes on in the blackfish-based theme parks. You don't need to be a die hard animal rights activist to sympathize with the cases presented in the film. I work at a wildlife rehabilitation center, and it's sad to say the killer whales aren't just an isolated case; we can apply the same troubles to just about any other facility that handles wild animals and other exotic species that were never meant to be put behind plexiglass and bars. While the argument it tries to make has its merits, it comes off a tad idealistic with unrealistic solutions to a greed-riddled world.… Expand

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

bwall-e

Dec 13, 2013

This film was a huge disappointment. It lacked a clear focus and was not at all what it claimed to be. This seems more like a sideways attempt to sling mud at SeaWorld in a circumferential manner, though it seems this claim may have some merit (there seems to have been some deliberate orThis film was a huge disappointment. It lacked a clear focus and was not at all what it claimed to be. This seems more like a sideways attempt to sling mud at SeaWorld in a circumferential manner, though it seems this claim may have some merit (there seems to have been some deliberate or negligent mismanagement). This film is nothing like the great Planet Earth series.

I would not recommend you watch this film.… Expand

0 of 8 users found this helpful08

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