Virunga

Virunga National Park in the Congo is a place of unique natural beauty. It is the home to a plethora of wonderful animals and vegetation but as is so often the way, it has several serious problems that threaten it. It's the location of human violence, corruption and exploitation. The disasters that specifically loom are two different groups, the M23 and SOCO International. The former are a violent rebel force who engages in an ongoing civil war with the Congolese government and the latter are a British energy company who specialise in oil exploration. Both M23 and SOCO invade the park in their own ways and neither seems very interested in the laws that have been set up to protect the flora and fauna that exist there, far less the people who live there. It seems hardly surprising in the case of M23, as they are a paramilitary organisation who can hardly be expected to be concerned with such things but it is the more legitimate big business SOCO who seem more worrying if anything. We discover in fact that they have been involved in a bribery campaign, utilising M23 as enforcers. It's a very murky situation where big money walks all over an impoverished nation and disregards a natural space that they can see no value in in their pursuit of financial profit.

The symbol of the park in many ways is the mountain gorillas. Virunga is the last place on earth where they live freely in the wild and they are a protected species. This, of course, doesn't stop poachers killing parent apes and forcibly kidnapping the young for sale. Nor does it stop enemies of the park from simply killing these magnificent animals in an attempt to destroy the very thing that they see the park being protected for, in an attempt to make Virunga a place devoid of a reason to be protected in the first place. It's a horribly cynical situation. The documentary often almost plays out like a movie in its drama. We often hear about people working hard to save the environment but in Virunga we witness people literally putting their lives on the line fighting for this issue. This is the front line for environmentalists, a bloody warzone where it's pretty obvious who the good guys are. Over the course of the last fifteen years, 130 park rangers have been killed protecting Virunga. It's not far off one death a month and it shows the extreme dedication of these brave folks.

The film focuses chiefly on four such brave souls. There is Emmanuel de Merode, a Belgian warden who runs the park and dedicates himself to its protection. He was shot by gunmen two days after handing in a dossier of evidence against SOCO. Thankfully he survived and went straight back to work. We also have Rodrigue, one of Emmanuel's park rangers, who puts himself in the firing line on a daily basis. He also goes undercover for the film in order to expose bribery tactics. Likewise, Melanie, a French freelance journalist, also goes undercover to expose the views of the SOCO people involved in the enterprise. And lastly there is Andre, the guardian of four young gorillas, orphaned by the poachers. His dedication to the animals is touching and he is, to all intents and purposes, their parent. He links us back into the gorillas and the very essence of Virunga itself.

This is a very strong documentary about an issue that is not so well known. It avoids preachiness and simply shows us things. Director Orlando von Einsiedel has to be given a lot of credit for how he handles the material and presents it in an engaging way, while making a very serious point. Unsurprisingly, there is much gritty, on-the-fly footage but it is also combined with beautifully composed images of the park. The cinematography at times is actually quite stunning. It makes sense to have adopted this approach, as this is a film that is about grim exploitation but also one about something very beautiful too.

Often, films nominated for the Best Full-Length Documentary Oscar are exceptionally brave films where the filmmakers went to insane lengths to tell important stories. Last year, one film was made in the midst of a revolution and the filmmakers could have easily been killed filming the democracy movement. Another film featured the filmmakers confronting folks who'd committed genocide decades ago and actually got them to talk about their hideous crimes. This year, one such brave nominated documentary is "Virunga"--and once again, the folks who made this movie could have easily gotten killed to bring us this important story.

"Virunga" is set at a national park by this same name. It's in the Democratic Republic of Congo--a nation which was known as Zaire until recently. The park is important because it's the last habitat of the Mountain Gorilla--and there are only about 700-800 left in the wild and these creatures have just about been wiped out in recent years in nearby Rwanda. Many folks in this film truly love the animals and have dedicated their lives to protecting them. Much of the footage of these folks is quite touching. Unfortunately, the park is also in a country that's been torn apart by civil wars--a series of wars in which over 5,000,000 people have died! But it gets worse...it looks as if there are oil reserves in the park and some outside interests seem willing to do almost anything to get their hands on these oil reserves. According to the film, a company named SOCO is fueling the civil war and encourages the killing off of the gorillas. That's because some think if these gorillas could be wiped out once and for all, then there is no reason to keep this region as a national park and the oil riches could be tapped. As a result, 130 of the park's rangers have been murdered trying to protect these beautiful creatures.

The story is quite compelling but what really impressed me is how far the filmmakers went to get the story. They not only filmed the park and its rangers but filmed some very dangerous stuff as well. Various hidden camera interviews were made which confirm that many of the people working for SOCO are offering bribes and exerting pressure by bringing in mercenaries. While this British company may not be behind these actions, the film clearly shows its employees engaging in some evil and exploitive behaviors. Additionally, when the war came to the outskirts of the park, the filmmakers showed some of the action--and placing themselves in a very dangerous situation.

The bottom line is that the film is very well made and shows an amazing willingness to go as far as they need to in order to get the story out to the rest of the world. Few outside the region realize just how bad life has become there or how dire the plight is for the gorillas. Because this is the filmmakers' aim, their website is chock full of information as well as suggestions as to what you can do to help.

By the way, don't assume this problem of poaching and habitat destruction is limited to the Congo. A few months ago, I was in South Africa and it's one of the richer and more politically stable nations on the continent. While on a photo safari, I stood only inches away from the carcass of a dead rhino--killed by poachers because of some insane notion that rhino horn bestows virility on people using it in folk medicines! What a waste...

UPDATE: This film lost to "Citizen Four". I have no idea if this was a good or not, as I haven't yet seen this winning film.

"Consider this: Only 880 Mountain Gorillas Remain in the World."

Orlando von Einsiedel, a former professional snowboarder, began making short documentaries in 2010 skating through the streets of Kabul, Afghanistan. He then continued working in Africa directing several shorts across the continent, and that is when a photograph of a group of rangers at Virunga National Park caught his attention. The story was far too compelling for a short, so he decided to direct his first feature documentary centering on the current situation in Congo. The Park rangers are completely committed to protecting the wild life where the world's remaining Mountain Gorillas live, but as in most of the African continent the unstable government situation has made their survival difficult. With rebel groups trying to fund their armies, the rich minerals present in the park are their means to it. But these dangerous rebel groups aren't the only enemy that the rangers face. SOCO, a British gas company, was given permission by the Congolese government to explore the territory for oil reserves. The contradiction is that Virunga is a protected park due to the endangered species living their. Through a series of interesting investigative work, a reporter named Melanie Gouby manages to befriend SOCO employees and discovers a link between them and the rebel groups. She also exposes the corruption behind some of the officials. What results is a fascinating documentary that gets more and more exciting as the story develops.

What Virunga does best is combine astonishing shots of the beautiful landscape of the park with the chaos that the country has been experiencing due to the rebel groups and corrupt government officials. The innocence of the baby gorillas playing with some of the rangers who are willing to sacrifice their lives for these animals is juxtaposed with the racial and distasteful comments of some of the employees trying to exploit the park. If this were a feature film, I'd say the villains were stereotypically played because their comments and actions are simply cringeworthy. But this is the real deal and it is a shame that these people think this way. Our lack of humanity is brilliantly portrayed and it easily contradicts the beauty of the park. While rebel groups create chaos and shoot innocent kids, gorilla caretakers like André Bauma are willing to risk their lives for the gorillas. In a touching scene he says "You must justify why you are on this Earth. Gorillas justify why I am here. They are my life." This takes place as the rebel groups close in on the park spreading fear through gunshots and explosions. So we get both sides of humanity in this touching documentary and that contradiction is what makes this such an exciting and upsetting film at the same time.

Being in the line of fire probably wasn't easy for von Einsiedel, but his bravery pays off because he has managed to direct a fascinating documentary which received a nomination at this year's Academy Awards. The way he allows his camera to capture the beauty of the park reminds us of what a great tourist attraction this place could be if it weren't for the danger that lurks in the area. The reason it hasn't become one of the world's main attractions is because of the constant war and instability of the region, but if there could be some way of reaching peace I'm sure their could be much more wealth found in tourism than in the minerals everyone's trying to exploit there. Virunga reminded me a lot of the universal theme found in films like Avatar dealing with corporate greed and corruption versus the beauty of nature and how our greed is destroying it. Virunga is a compelling watch and a documentary you won't regret experiencing.

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Virunga is a stunning film, part nature documentary, and part gritty exposé of the realities of life on the ground in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a country that has been torn apart by conflict for thirty years.

Director Orlando von Einsiedel does an incredible job at telling a complex story - documenting the beauty and remarkable vitality of Virunga National Park, alongside a developing story of corruption and greed, as it is revealed that a British oil company, Soco International, has been exploring for oil with the park's boundaries.

The film features remarkable characters, from the gentle and fatherly gorilla carer Andre Bauma, through to the fearless French journalist Melanie Gouby, alongside the remarkable rangers who put their lives on to protect Congo's natural heritage.

To make this film even more engaging, the issues at its heart are still very much relevant, and even though oil company Soco agreed in June 2014 to halt exploration the park, the fight is still not over. I urge you to watch this film, and educate yourself on its surrounding campaign. This is not a story which should be forgotten.

A group of brave individuals risk their lives to save the last of the world's mountain gorillas; in the midst of renewed civil war and a scramble for Congo's natural resources.

We start with a broad overview of Congo history, and how outsiders helped ruined it. Unfortunately, as we soon find out, this is not just ancient history. We also see a British oil company's disregard for a World Heritage Site, and the human-gorilla interaction of those pledged to save it.

Sheri Linden described Virunga as an "urgent investigative report and unforgettable drama... a work of heart-wrenching tenderness and heart-stopping suspense". Beautifully put, Ms. Linden. Few people know much about the Congo, and this should open their eyes to how the people (and animals) are still being affected by colonization today.