A guy interested in the impact of the plastic boom on the ocean’s life spins a chain that threatens the ecology of the oceans. The deeper he plunges into his investigation, the more he realizes that it is not plastic straws that bring death to the sea but the uncontrolled extermination of its living creatures. There is a plastic pollution problem in the waters, but industrial fishing is causing much more harm to the environment. The focus of public attention has been deliberately and successfully shifted from a much larger disaster.
The film presents the results of Ali Tabrizi’s research that sheds light on what has been neglected for a long time. The scenes shown in the films evoke different feelings when viewed. The author uses an emotional appeal when he records the chronicle of a dolphin hunt in a corral in Japanese Taiji. The cold-blooded mindless killing of intelligent animals and the terrible statistics from the first moments are striking, provoking an emotional response. Tabrizi gradually unravels problem after problem; scenes of the scale of the commercial fishing industry cannot leave one indifferent.
At the beginning of his investigation, the author is unaware of more global ocean problems than plastic pollution. Then one can trace the pathos in the words and actions of the actor and, concurrently, the author of this film. Realizing the impact of the problem on the environment, the young guy demonstratively refuses to use plastic, collects garbage on beaches, and donates funds to an organization to combat ocean pollution. The scenes from the fishing industry study seem logical and appropriate; facts and expert opinions confirm his guesses and lead to further reflections; research evidence can be considered authoritative by the audience. This documentary is not trivial; from the first minutes, the author’s distinctive approach to the material immerses them in what is happening. The film raises many questions about the oceans: unintentional fishing for fish and marine animals during the main catch, ocean pollution with plastic waste, and frankly frightening whaling traditions in the Faroe Islands.
Public organizations refuse to communicate with the director, and at some point, the police even come for Tabrizi. However, there are still people who agreed to be interviewed in the film. For example, legendary scientist Sylvia Earl and eco-activist Rick O’Barry reveal their missions to protect the ocean in detail (Tabrizi). Some express contradictory things on camera – David Phillips, director of the Earth Island Institute in California. The organization issuing food badges, which state that no dolphins were harmed during the extraction, cannot guarantee this information, as the director’s interviewee reported.
This is the main conflict of the Seaspiracy: Tabrizi admits that he is not a scientist but loads a lot of scientific information into the viewer, which does not always correspond to reality. Perhaps two theses from the film cause the greatest shock during viewing: 46 percent of the “Garbage Continent” comprises fishing nets, not plastic straws. The second one is that by 2048 the world’s oceans will be without any life. The opinion about the situation described in the film cannot be unambiguous, given that some statements were refuted outside the film, including by the author himself. However, based on what Tabrizi captured on camera, there is a reason for concern. The overfishing crisis should be paid more attention to, and measures should remedy the situation.
Work Cited
Tabrizi, Ali, director. Seaspiracy, A.U.M. Films, 2021, Netflix.