‘A Taste of Whale’ Review: Balance Doc Examines a Bloody Tradition in the Far North
variety.comDennis Harvey Film CriticA whale hunt tradition in the Faroe Islands that’s long been condemned by animal rights activists is given evenhanded examination in Vincent Kelner’s “A Taste of Whale.” This well-crafted French documentary does provide some of the grisly “massacre” footage seen in prior indictments of the seasonal “Grindadrap,” or Grind.
But it also lets locals weigh in about something they feel is a part of their cultural identity, while Sea Shepherd campaigners opposed to a practice they deem “monstrous” also get their say.
This solid both-sides-now overview also raises wider questions regarding humanity’s sometimes-hypocritical ethics toward what we eat, where we get it, and how.
Opening text informs, “Around 700 large dolphins called ‘pilot whales’ are slaughtered each year in the archipelago” that comprises the Faroes, a nation of about 50,000 that lies in the Atlantic two hundred miles north of Scotland.
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