My Octopus Teacher
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After years of swimming every day in the freezing ocean at the tip of Africa, Craig Foster meets an unlikely teacher: a young octopus who displays remarkable curiosity. Visiting her den and tracking her movements for months on end he eventually wins the animal’s trust and they develop a never-before-seen bond between human and wild animal.
- Released: 2020-09-04
- Runtime: 84 minutes
- Genre: Documentaries
- Stars: Craig Foster, Tom Foster
- Director: Philippa Ehrlich, James Reed
Comments
- imdb-92083 - 7 May 2024
The new Attenborough?
This dude should be honoured and do more, land, sea, space, whatever.
The raw emotion and narration is near perfect as he befriend an octopus, and watches it die, carried off by a shark.
Occasionally intervening, which he feels bad about as that is a rule - do not intervene with Nature! It's a fine balance, the circle of life and the food chain, the butterfly effect that if you mess with a tiny element- future ramifications can be massive.
I defy anyone not to cry at the end, it's so hard to watch, but there is some redemption. He knows what is going to happen deep in his heart, as Octopi only live a year or so.
Expertly shot, i don't know how this film came to be such a success- unique in nature documentaries as it focuses on one animal than a species. - marij0h - 26 September 2023
Exploitation and/or true friendship?
I'm not sure what to think about the document. It is beautiful, touching and educational. Perhaps some people will start appreciating more octopuses and kelp forests after seeing it and that's great. It's wonderful to see the filmmaker being emotional about their friendship which seems genuine. I love the environmental initiative which he started rolling as a result.
On the other hand, I could not help and wonder if the document is a sort of animal exploitation itself. Why call someone their friend and make a document about a friendship but not help your friend when they are in need? Perhaps the filmmaker was scared about crossing the line in case it had raised questions about the documentary value of the film.
