La Sagesse de la pieuvre

As I sit here in my living room with the 'very unhealthy smoke' outside (from all the rampant PNW fires) I turned on Netflix and saw this Documentary. I thought Hmmm...that looks good. I was immersed from the get go. 23 minutes into it I paused it and had to text all my friends and tell them to watch it. I just put a post on Facebook to please watch this incredible film. It was one the THE very BEST documentaries I have ever watched. I always knew the octopus was smart but this film reminded me how smart. The bond between the octopus and filmmaker were beyond amazing. See this film now. And tell all your friends. There are important messages to take away from this documentary and we need to share those messages. We are part of this earth. Not just visitors. By the way, this is my first ever review. I felt compelled to write one after seeing this movie.

I had mixed reactions to this documentary about a man's love for an octopus. I've seen a lot of reviewers complain that it's yet one more story about a self-absorbed privileged white guy whining about his white person problems and making the underwater natural world all about himself. I can see how people might react to the movie that way I guess, but I didn't feel that way while watching it. Instead, I thought it was a visually breathtaking film about our relationship with and responsibility to the natural world. The way he approached his subject didn't seem that intrusive to me, and there were several moments where he explicitly said he did not interfere with nature even when he wanted to because he didn't want to upset the natural balance. I thought this film was a good reminder that we co-exist with the natural world and it's to mankind's benefit to respect it and try to understand it, if for no other reason than that our lives depend on it.

And and can I just say that the octopus may just be one of the most fascinating creatures on the face of the earth?

Grade: A-

There's not much to say about this documentary type movie. It show cases an animal that's one of the most intelligent creatures we know and interacting with it, in its own environment. I was pretty shocked by how much personality the octopus showed, and intelligence. It gives you such a large level of empathy and love for a creature that's so alien looking compared to a regular pet (a dog or a cat).

Definitely needed this in 2020. Would recommend this for anyone that enjoys the sea, or really, anyone.

A truly touching story of two species connecting on a level that is unknown to most. Animals are the greatest teachers out there, and what a blessing it is to connect with such an extraordinary creature. This just goes to show no matter how unlikely the connection, love can exist in any form.

If "My Octopus Teacher" does win the Oscar for Best Documentary Feature as predicted, (it's already won the BAFTA), I don't think I'll be complaining even if I think "Collective" the better film and the more worthy winner but that's only because "Collective" tells the more important story and is the more radical film. "My Octopus Teacher" is fairly radical, too, and as documentary filmmaking goes it's a beautiful job of work with some of the finest 'natural' cinematography I've ever seen, ("Blue Planet" eat your heart out).

It even has a plot of sorts and two leading players. One is Craig Foster, an explorer and cinematographer whose daily dives to a kelp forest in the seas off South Africa leads him to the films second character, a female octopus that Foster becomes very attached to and who, it would appear, becomes very attached to him, literally at times. Octopuses, it turns out, are highly intelligent creatures and Foster's octopus seems more intelligent than most, an 'alien' creature that can recognize an individual human being and want to be with that human, albeit in her own natural environment.

Of course, the octopus is also a wild animal in a wild, natural environment and much as he might want to Foster knows he can do nothing to change that; as we say, he has to let nature take its course while at the same time allowing himself to be 'taught' by the octopus, taught not just to care about the octopus itself but creatures in general and, strange as it may seem, interacting with this creature brough Foster closer to his own son. Superbly photographed and edited, its only falut lies in Foster's rather deadpan narration. He may be a nice guy but is somewhat dull in his delivery; luckily his camera speaks volumes.