DARWIN'S NIGHTMARE (written and directed by Hubert Sauper)
First of all you have to mention that the film DARWIN'S NIGHTMARE is a documentary. The film deals with the topic of colonization respectively globalization and their consequences over there in Tanzania. The results are that the majority of the population is condemned to starving, to slavery, to prostitution and to drug-addiction.
As I wrote before, the setting is Tanzania (South-East of Africa), but most attention is put on Lake Victoria, the world's biggest tropical lake. That sounds nice, but the cruel reality is that someone has released a Nile perch in this lake. As you can imagine this release wasn't the best for the lake. It turned out to be an ecological disaster. This perch bred and grew and by the time it destroyed the whole balance of the lake. The perch has nearly become the lake's only inhabitant, beside some crocodiles. Now the Nile perch is the most important source for income of the natives (25% of export). Each day about 500 tons of these fish are caught. That's a great number and you may think that these people are rich, because of such a big amount. Well, they are not. They earn very little for a very tough job (about one dollar, I think). The disgusting circumstances do not make it that better and easier (They have to work between dead fish and maggots). Children have to fight for their meals, adults die because of diseases and others go into prostitution. So, that's what you see in the film; cruel, crazy, but unfortunately true stuff.
This film is a very good documentary. First I thought it would be very boring, because I didn't know anything about it and I couldn't find a lot about it on the Internet (not as much as I found about other films). This film is a real eye-opener. What really shocked and shook me are the bad circumstances the natives have to work in. I mean they have to work between rotten fish-heads and maggots and do not get a lot of money for this kind of work. That is even disgusting to watch, but what do you think it is for the workers? Another fact is that the gases of the dead fish (ammoniac gas) are venomous and destroy the eyes of the workers. In my opinion that is not humane. I think that if they got more money they would have a better life. They do not need 100 or thousand dollars more. Why? Because most of them have to live with just one dollar a day. Just a few more dollars are a lot for them. Who could change this? I think the big companies which sell the fish. Just give them a few dollars more and their own fish to eat and they would be happy. Come on, give it to them. You would do a humane thing and you could say that you really want to help the people over there. That would be good publicity, too. So, please think about it, you could afford it! Conclusion: You should see this film.
Thanks for reading this review.
First of all you have to mention that the film DARWIN'S NIGHTMARE is a documentary. The film deals with the topic of colonization respectively globalization and their consequences over there in Tanzania. The results are that the majority of the population is condemned to starving, to slavery, to prostitution and to drug-addiction.
As I wrote before, the setting is Tanzania (South-East of Africa), but most attention is put on Lake Victoria, the world's biggest tropical lake. That sounds nice, but the cruel reality is that someone has released a Nile perch in this lake. As you can imagine this release wasn't the best for the lake. It turned out to be an ecological disaster. This perch bred and grew and by the time it destroyed the whole balance of the lake. The perch has nearly become the lake's only inhabitant, beside some crocodiles. Now the Nile perch is the most important source for income of the natives (25% of export). Each day about 500 tons of these fish are caught. That's a great number and you may think that these people are rich, because of such a big amount. Well, they are not. They earn very little for a very tough job (about one dollar, I think). The disgusting circumstances do not make it that better and easier (They have to work between dead fish and maggots). Children have to fight for their meals, adults die because of diseases and others go into prostitution. So, that's what you see in the film; cruel, crazy, but unfortunately true stuff.
This film is a very good documentary. First I thought it would be very boring, because I didn't know anything about it and I couldn't find a lot about it on the Internet (not as much as I found about other films). This film is a real eye-opener. What really shocked and shook me are the bad circumstances the natives have to work in. I mean they have to work between rotten fish-heads and maggots and do not get a lot of money for this kind of work. That is even disgusting to watch, but what do you think it is for the workers? Another fact is that the gases of the dead fish (ammoniac gas) are venomous and destroy the eyes of the workers. In my opinion that is not humane. I think that if they got more money they would have a better life. They do not need 100 or thousand dollars more. Why? Because most of them have to live with just one dollar a day. Just a few more dollars are a lot for them. Who could change this? I think the big companies which sell the fish. Just give them a few dollars more and their own fish to eat and they would be happy. Come on, give it to them. You would do a humane thing and you could say that you really want to help the people over there. That would be good publicity, too. So, please think about it, you could afford it! Conclusion: You should see this film.
Thanks for reading this review.