Whaledreamers (2006) User Reviews

Tedious

[roedyg · 5/10 · 11 August 2013]

A Maori shaman, with financial help from Julian Lennon holds a gathering of obese tribal elders from all over the globe.

Each participant gets up, gives a pretentious long-winded speech on theme of unity and performs a potent magic ceremony. This goes on and on and on and on.

Eventually, they decide to do some whale dreaming. This consists of jumping up and down, shouting and singing on the edge of an ocean cliff until someone spots a whale. They successfully spotted a whale, declared it a miracle and rejoiced with much rejoicing.

The tedium is periodically broken with some spectacular underwater shots of extreme closeups of a majestic southern right whale.

You hear a little about land claims, prejudice and injustice. One South American rain forest tribe promised to commit mass suicide if a large corporation would not get off their backs. They succeeded "with their singing" according to the movie. They sang a song whose words claimed the world would end if ever the song ended. It eventually did, and the earth carried on.

They are a brutalised little band. They are so addled they imagine magic ceremonies are the only way to solve their problems.

Incoherent

[timickle · 2/10 · 2 February 2018]

It is a pity that such an important cause is associated with this awful mess of a film. It is never made clear who is narrating (always important in a documentary), there is no apparent timeline, and the editing is simply appalling with every transition being either a long cross-fade or a pointless fade to black. The real problem is lack of coverage. Most of the original footage seems to have been (poorly) shot on the same day, to such an extent that we start to recognize the extras - the guy in shades apparently asleep, the ginger-haired white guy gone native and sunburned like a lobster, and so on. This thin soup is larded with a few good stock images, and some dreadfully made composites. The whole subject of the Dreamtime, and the nature of cultural memory, was far better served by The Last Wave, a work of fiction made almost forty years ago. It deserves a proper filmmaker, and Whaledreamers just didn't have one. I give it two stars because it has Julian Lennon in a couple of scenes, and I have always admired his dad.

Incredible Powerful Awakening Movie!

[bkneeland3369 · 10/10 · 29 August 2010]

My wife, Cathy, and I just watched the movie. It blew us away. From hope to loss to hope once again. This movie will awaken your core. The common issues and deprivation of all people around the world and especially here in the United States, to South America, Australia, and New Zealand. We don't value the connections with the ancestors.

You connect very easily with the people in this movie. The tribes and stories from different indigenous cultures throughout the world are breathtaking and deeply spiritual.

I pray this movie will motivate you to stand up and move the human race into a better understanding and living with nature. To take back our humanity one person at a time if need be.

With love and compassion - Bob and Cathy.