Behind Japan's whaling, 100,000 lives are waiting to die...

Pattie 2022-03-28 09:01:02

When it comes to the most well-known industries in Japan, most people's first reaction is definitely anime and AV.

In fact, many people don't know that in addition to the amazing production of animation and AV, the island country is also the world's largest whaling country and whale-eating country. Commercial whaling has a history of more than 400 years.

In fact, if the history of whaling in Japan can be traced back to the Jomon period more than 8,000 years ago, there was already a tradition of eating whales at that time.

Therefore, the Japanese government on the 26th disregarded the opposition of other countries for the sake of whaling in an open and honest manner.

Officially announced its withdrawal from the International Whaling Commission (IWC), and plans to restart commercial whaling from July next year.

The resumption of commercial whaling after 30 years has been strongly condemned by the international community.

But apart from moral condemnation, who else can stop Japan's frenzied whaling?

Today, Xiaoying presents a movie related to whaling for everyone, hoping to touch the hearts of that part of "human beings".

"Deep Ocean"

You can think of this film as a disaster film, but what Xiaoying wants to tell you is that this film is based on real events.

It is based on the long documentary "Deep Ocean" of the same name, which tells about the real shipwreck experienced by the American whaling ship "Essex" in the South Pacific in 1820.

In this sudden disaster, 20 crew members were adrift at sea for 90 days, and eight people survived the whole ship.

They survived because they ate the corpses of their companions.

The tragedy of cannibalism in shipwrecks is not uncommon in the age of sailing.

Compared with the metaphor of the cannibalistic plot of "The Fantasy Drift of the Young Pi", "Deep Ocean" is much more straightforward.

The shocking real shipwreck of the "Essex" was once known as the 19th century super shipwreck similar to the Titanic.

Compared with cannibalism, what is more cruel is the real event.

In 1820, at that time, humans could not obtain oil from land, and people's demand for lighting oil and mechanical lubricants was increasing.

So whaling and hunting for whale oil became a highly profitable industry.

They depend on this giant to survive.

It is also known as "whaling" as providing fuel for industrial machines and promoting the progress of the great motherland, which is a symbol of the progress of civilization and race.

At that time, the United States was the leading whaling power, with whaling ships all over the world and sailing in the most distant seas.

"Essex" is one of them.

They were lucky, they caught a whale soon after going out to sea and got 47 barrels of whale oil.

When they saw groups of whales spraying water, everyone's mental state reached the extreme of excitement.

surprise.

happy.

These seem to be the most terrifying creatures on earth, for whalers, it is a symbol of money, power and status.

Especially when the first shot of victory was fired, they were so happy, laughing wildly, jumping, and only a group of them cheered on the sea of ​​the Atlantic Ocean.

Wildly excited, proud, and longing, that is life in full bloom, human beings are growing, and civilization is conquering.

However, after that, it became more and more difficult for the fleet to encounter whales, and they were not satisfied because the ship was not yet full of whale oil.

They are a group of people, I heard that there are whales near the equator, and there are many, more than you can imagine.

However, the whales there are so big that you can't imagine. A 1200-meter-long whale has never been heard of whaling in your life. It's all money, and they are going forward.

Finally, their boat was overturned, smashed and sunk by the 1,200-meter-long whale.

At sea, 90 days, three months, nine deaths.

There was no land, no food, the scorching sun was burning, the 1,200-meter-long whale stalked, and the companions died one by one.

In the most difficult times of life, people are animals, they drank blood, they eat people.

When they had to, they cast lots to decide life and death.

Even in desperation, some people took the initiative to shoot themselves.

Just so that my corpse can extend the life of my companions...

The nearly two-hour film contains reflections on human nature, as well as reflections on man and nature.

In the depths of the ocean, in the depths of people's hearts, as long as those who survive, have the most painful struggles.

Lin Yutang wrote in "My Country and My People": "The degree of a person's enlightenment is equal to the depth of his suffering."

Perhaps this is the case. The most moving scene in this film is the moment when the protagonist Owen puts down his spear.

It was a battle-hardened whaler who had fought against a giant sperm whale many times, and after a series of shipwrecks, pains, and choices, he faced this behemoth again, with complex emotions such as inner entanglement and struggle.

At this time, he was no longer confident and mighty when he stood on the deck in the past.

Standing on the swaying little wooden boat, looking at the world whale, the scarred whale swam just a short distance away from him, the spear held high in his hand was finally put down at that moment, and the giant whale never returned...

This is the result of Owen's inner struggle, the mutual concession between man and the whale, the letting go of the whaler's obsession, and the cleansing and enlightenment from the depths of his soul.

If whaling was for fuel 200 years ago, what about now.

Indeed, in the beginning, there were many whaling nations, and Japan was one of them.

But now, with the development of the oil industry, many whaling countries such as Australia have turned into "anti-fishing factions", while Japan is still often condemned by international public opinion because of its whaling.

According to a recent report by the British "Guardian", Japan dispatched two whaling ships during the 2018 annual summer hunt in the Southern Ocean, killing a total of 333 minke whales, of which 122 were pregnant mothers and 114 were calves.

Even if it announced the abandonment of commercial whaling after the signing of the "Global Convention on the Prohibition of Whaling" in 1986, Japan will use the loophole of "allowing whaling for scientific research purposes" to kill 200 to 1,200 whales every year, including calves and calves. Pregnant female whale.

Even in their country, this is a tradition, whales are a kind of food, and there is no difference between whaling and fishing.

In 2009, a documentary film "Dolphin Bay" showing the scene of dolphin hunting in Taiji, Japan, showed the blood of Japan's dolphin hunting to the world.

What impressed Xiaoying most in the film was the smiles of local fishermen after catching dolphins.

At the hands of Japanese fishermen, countless dolphins were killed and blood stained the bay.

Japan has now withdrawn from the group, which means that commercial whaling will be carried out to the end. No matter how bad the reputation of the "pirate whaling country" is, they are very happy, because the International Whaling Commission (IWC) can no longer control them. It can be said that they are lawless. . In fact, not only whales, dolphins, but countless animals have died cruelly at the hands of humans.

Countless elephants have their entire faces cut off and exposed in the wilderness just because they have beautiful tusks.

Minks are stripped of their skins alive, just because their fur can make mink coats.

The spine of the crocodile was penetrated alive by a steel bar, just to peel off a whole piece of skin to make a big bag.

Newborn chicks, if "born of the wrong sex", are immediately sent to the meat grinder and turned into a bloody mass.

Newborn piglets have their teeth and tails clipped without pain relief to avoid biting each other.

............

There are too many, every bloody example makes Xiaoying very uncomfortable to see, every frame seems to be a question of human nature.

Even some types of deaths, due to the large number, can only be counted in tons.

Is it scary to eat people?

If this cold, brutal way of dying happened to a human being, the perpetrators would be jailed immediately.

But as human beings, we don't feel sorry for animals too much.

What did the animals do wrong, they didn't even have the right to say a word before dying.

In fact, the most terrifying thing in the world is not those ferocious animals, but the people who are blinded by interests.

How many more animals must die tragically to arouse people's conscience?

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View more about In the Heart of the Sea reviews

Extended Reading
  • Fay 2022-04-22 07:01:18

    Disappointed, the relationship between the characters is insufficient, the theme is not clear enough, and a lot of trivial shots in the first half are rendering the atmosphere. The mode is similar to the speed of romance, and the plot is well shot, but it is not suitable for this theme.

  • Laurence 2022-04-22 07:01:18

    The audio-visual shocking, the sailing, the sea storm, and the whale hunting scenes are all majestic and magnificent, the image quality is also excellent, and many of the compositions are extremely beautiful.

In the Heart of the Sea quotes

  • Old Thomas Nickerson: The tragedy of the Essex is the story of men. And a Demon.

  • Old Thomas Nickerson: [from trailer] We were headed for the edge of sanity... like we were aberrations, phantoms. Trust gave way to doubt. Hope to superstition.