I watched Blackfish, which is the story of killer whales that kept in captivity in places such as Sea World.
The film begins with the 911 call that was placed when Dawn Brancheau was killed by Tilikum, a whale that had already been involved in the deaths of two other people. The film shines a harsh light on for-profit attractions like Sea World, and how they exploit the animals that they claim to care for: from separating the babies from their mothers, to training them to perform unnatural stunts in artificial environments, sometimes using cruel methods such as food deprivation. I'm already uncomfortable with for-profit entertainment that relies on captive animals such as circuses and some other establishments, so this just reaffirmed my decision to stay away from places such as those. I love to visit zoos, but now I find myself researching any place I might be tempted to visit because I want to ensure that it is a non-profit organization that has a stellar reputation.
I also recently watched Mommy Dead and Dearest.
This chronicles the story of Gypsy Rose Blancharde, and the abuse she suffered under her mother Dee Dee. Dee Dee used the guise of a loving, devoted mother to fool almost everyone into believing that her daughter was very sick, and the ailments ranged from hearing and vision problems to leukemia. She shaved her daughter's head and controlled nearly every interaction her daughter ever had, social or medical. In 2015, Dee Dee was found murdered in their home. The police quickly discovered that Gypsy was not who she appeared to be; instead of a frail wheelchair-bound waif, she was on the run with her boyfriend, whom she had met online and asked him to kill her mother. This is certainly the most well-known case of Munchausen by proxy in recent memory, and it has everyone buzzing, speculating about what 'should' have happened.
And I also have two other documentaries started, but I haven't had a chance to finish them yet, so I'll postpone writing about them:
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