I Am an Animal: The Story of Ingrid Newkirk and PETA (2007)

User Rating:

6.7/10   

Director:

Matthew Galkin

Release Date:

17 November 2007 (USA)

Genre:

Documentary

Plot:

A candid and introspective look at the extreme beliefs and motives of Ingrid Newkirk, the British-born co-founder and driving force behind People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), the world's largest animal-rights organization.

Plot Keywords:

Activism | Activist

Cast

Bill Maher	...	Himself
Ingrid Newkirk	...	Herself
Alex Pacheco	...	Himself
Pink	...	Herself
Mary Beth Sweetland	...	Herself

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color (DV 24p)

Certification:

Australia:MA

Company:

Stick Figure Productions

Well Done ... Wow!

I grew up disliking PETA because of the things I had heard about them: throwing pies at people, extreme activism, standing in the way of medical research, etc. Well, this documentary pretty much confirmed all that but gave me a new perspective: PETA may not be "as bad" as I thought after all.

Basically, this is a documentary about Ingrid Newkirk, the British co-founder of PETA, and the organization itself. We see how they discuss situations, infiltrate organizations and plan 'extreme' demonstrations. We also get perspectives on PETA from different animal rights organizations.

According to the show, PETA does not seem to be liked by other animal rights groups. However, one does start to get a sense that PETA may have a role to play in our society - a role that those other groups are not performing. Ingrid shamelessly admits that much of what they do is to elicit shock value to get a "soundbyte" on the news. Otherwise, the public will hear nothing.

The program also indicates that there are very few "checks and balances" in the area of animal rights - so perhaps we need a wild and extreme attention getting group to get some knowledge out there. While I watched, I realized that I don't want a company to have a blank check to do anything to animals. It seems like it's often very hard to know what they're doing at all. Ignorance is bliss, but I'm not sure I want that kind of bliss.

I may disagree with PETA's ultimate agenda (there are some hints about that from the co-founder that left), but for now, I dislike PETA a whole lot less.

Whatever your views on PETA, this documentary is well worth the time. It's challenging, informative and frank.