Review of My Octopus Teacher

I had mixed reactions to this documentary about a man's love for an octopus. I've seen a lot of reviewers complain that it's yet one more story about a self-absorbed privileged white guy whining about his white person problems and making the underwater natural world all about himself. I can see how people might react to the movie that way I guess, but I didn't feel that way while watching it. Instead, I thought it was a visually breathtaking film about our relationship with and responsibility to the natural world. The way he approached his subject didn't seem that intrusive to me, and there were several moments where he explicitly said he did not interfere with nature even when he wanted to because he didn't want to upset the natural balance. I thought this film was a good reminder that we co-exist with the natural world and it's to mankind's benefit to respect it and try to understand it, if for no other reason than that our lives depend on it.

And and can I just say that the octopus may just be one of the most fascinating creatures on the face of the earth?

Grade: A-