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A Whale of a Tale Review

By David Kempler

A Guppy of a Tale

In 2009, Louie Psihoyos's "The Cove" was an Oscar-winning documentary. It was an exposé about dolphin capture and slaughter in Taiji, Japan that was as bloody as could be, causing revulsion for most of its audience.

Now we have another view of the same situation with Megumi Sasaki's "A Whale of a Tale." Mostly meant as a repudiation of "The Cove," it really isn't. What it is, is more of a travel brochure to come visit Taiji, Japan. It presents the view that slaughtering whales and dolphins is a cultural issue, not an issue of unnecessary cruelty.

The film does make some valid points, however; primarily, how can a culture that slaughters cattle, pigs, chickens, etc. tell anyone that killing different animals is somehow so much worse? The net effect can cast doubts into the minds of carnivores, like myself. What right does one culture have to call another culture cruel because they slaughter different animals?

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One of the arguments used by Sasaki is that "The Cove" was a result of bullying of the Japanese locals. The hero of "A Whale of a Tale" is Jay Alabaster, an American journalist who has lived in Japan for 20 years. He comes across as a nice, gentle soul, and his love for Japan, including for the people of Taiji, comes through loud and clear.

While "The Cove" focused almost entirely on bloody dolphins, this time we are treated to festivals celebrating whales and dolphins, including schoolgirls singing and dancing about their love for the animals of the sea. All of the people of Taiji are presented as sweet and huggable and everything is festival-like. Meanwhile, the slaughter goes on.

The biggest overall problem with all of this is that it feels more like an ad for Taiji, Japan than a documentary. Of even greater concern is that its attempt to smooth over the bloodiness results in a pretty boring watch.

What did you think?

Movie title A Whale of a Tale
Release year 2016
MPAA Rating NR
Our rating
Summary This bland response to the brutality of "The Cove" is more brochure than documentary.
View all articles by David Kempler
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