256: A Whale of an Episode

Movie Meltdown - Episode 256 This week, we'll be talking about the documentary "Blackfish"... and all the questions and controversy that surround it. The 2013 film follows the story of Tilikum, a whale captured and eventually sent to perform at Sea World. The massive creature is responsible for several deaths over the years and we examine just who is to blame... the whale, his trainers or the corporation that runs the whole operation. The film touches on a lot of different issues and leads to some pretty interesting conversations.   And as we return to the coffee shop for another one of our traumatizing underwater adventures, we also discuss… L. Ron Hubbard, Humphrey Bogart, Man of Steel, how we deal with the homeless, banal and tedious, animals eating junk food, emitting a sound that had never been heard before, corporate corruption, animal incest, panda bears, Stockholm syndrome, Gentleman Broncos, a profound instinct for vengeance, cheesy 70's animal attack films, Jack Hanna, nature's arms race, preserving species, a coffee and pizza place, Superman in Mandarin, animal cruelty in film, grizzled Lucy, the first ever Christmas movie that I've disliked, the Beijing Zoo, Cary Grant, sent off to writer's camp, Sam Rockwell, Terence Stamp, being driven by greed and Dino De Laurentiis. Spoiler Alert: Spoilers for real life. Watch this documentary before you listen, or we may just spoil real life for you. You have been warned. "My mom actually called me after it aired on CNN, practically in tears, and apologized for ever having taken me there as a child."