Concrete Playground

Unfortunately in recent times the environmental doco has become the brown rice of cinematic experience – a seriously relevant but ultimately dry undertaking. But occasionally a non-fiction offering will rattle genre convention and achieve what is commonly found only in the contrived theatrics of feature film – suspense, intrigue and a gripping emotional ride. The Cove centers around Richard O’Barry - trainer to the original Flipper in the 1960’s TV series and now passionate activist - and an Oceans 11 style team of recruits, charting their perilous plight to expose the large-scale slaughter of dolphins carried out by Japanese fisherman in a secret cove in Taiji, Japan. Director Louie Psihoyos skillfully combines classic espionage style cinema with a grounded, authentic approach to portray the shocking reality of this covert and brutal activity. The result is a profoundly affecting film that defies genre and is likely to launch even the laziest of land-dwellers into action.