Darwin's Nightmare (2004, dir. Herbert Sauper) [Not Available on Video]

Darwin's Nightmare (2004, dir. Herbert Sauper)

What Is It?: A harrowing documentary about the effects the Nile perch -- an invasive fish species -- has had on the people who live and work on the shores of Lake Victoria, in Tanzania, the second largest lake in the world.

What About It?: It can be seen as a microcosm of what feels sometimes to a westerner as the hopeless situation in many African nations. The Nile perch are an omnivorous species, having at this point consumed all the other species in the lake. The fish are popular in Europe, so they are filleted and shipped out by the ton, and much of the film concerns what is left. And what is left? Fish heads and carcasses that sit in maggot-infested piles to be fried and sold to the locals; Styrofoam fish containers being melted down and huffed by local children as a free high; The weapons that the European pilots are bringing in on their way to pick up the fish.

Why Should I See It?: Though bleak, the film has, ultimately, a very ethical view to impart. Not particularly hopeful, but one is able to see the humanity and the beauty alongside the wrenching sorrow. An important film.

What Else Is It Like?: Life and Debt, Bus 174, These Hands.

When Is It Showing Until ON DEMAND?: 08/29/06

Watch It ON DEMAND on Comcast cable

--ddt/pdx