, on release from 8 June
“BEAUTIFUL” and “vast” are words that come to mind when thinking of the world’s oceans. “Inexhaustible” is another, which might explain why we think it is fine to plunder them for our dinner plates.
The End of the Line is a powerful wake-up call for anyone who heads straight to the menu’s fish section. It documents how overfishing is decimating the oceans, and makes alarming predictions about how fish stocks might look in 30 years’ time.
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Adapted from the , the film opens with stunning footage of our reefs and oceans. Unusual camera angles explore fishing nets from the inside out. The film follows Clover as he asks top restaurants why they still serve critically endangered species like bluefin tuna, and speaks to industry whistleblowers about how our love of fish is driving some species to the brink of extinction.
This is investigative journalism at its best. More importantly, it is an engaging film that provokes anger and sadness in equal measure. Anger at the greed of multinational companies who seem intent on catching as many tuna as they can before stocks run out, and at the politicians who do little to stop them by setting their fishing quotas well above what scientists recommend. Sadness, too, at the loss of species, and the wasted by-catch casually tossed back into the sea.
It is only when you witness the might of industrial fishing fleets with their giant trawlers and high-tech sonar that you realise the oceans aren’t vast and inexhaustible after all. Even if you don’t much care for the plight of fish, the film also rams home the human cost, as it explores the hardship industrial overfishing inflicts on communities in Senegal, who rely on fishing for income and nutrition.
Depressing viewing? Not entirely: the prevailing feeling at the end of the film is hope. Its great achievement is in giving you the sense that there’s something you can do, and . It hasn’t stopped me eating fish, but it has made me think twice about having tuna mayo on my baked potato.
