My Octopus Teacher

I am not a big fan of nature documentaries. Being an animal lover, I cringe at the depiction of the food chain in cinematic realness. Like the unnamed Star Trek crewmembers chosen to beam to a planet, my favorite characters are always first to be killed off.

It takes a lot for me to make an exception. Based on the recommendation of my brother-in-law, an avid snorkeler, I gave this movie a chance. I am so glad I did.

Not that it doesn’t have sharks and all that that implies. There is a real threat and menace in this beautiful film where we meet teacher and student.

A documentarian, Craig Foster, returns to his home in South Africa and begins free diving every day in the same kelp forest outside his cape home. After encountering a remarkable sight, discovering it is an octopus in disguise, Foster decides to return daily to this specific kelp forest. More specifically, he returns to follow and interact with the young octopus.

That first encounter, filmed by Foster, was featured on BBC’s Blue Planet 2 and is thought to be never-before-seen behavior. It is only one of the many remarkable sights the camera catches as the filmmakers follow this friendship over a year of daily dives. There is no doubt that a real bond formed between Foster and the young octopus who thankfully the diver did not name. Even though he tried to maintain a scientific distance from the subject, his observations tended to be more emotive than scientific. Trying to find similarities between his emotional turmoil and her life and death battles sells his subject short. It is my only criticism of the film, and it is a minor one. Easily put in its place when watching this fantastic octopus outsmart her most efficient enemy.

I broke my rule about nature documentaries while creating a new one about octopi. I will never eat Tako sushi again.