I watched The End of the Line recently, a documentary about the devastation modern man is wreaking on the oceans through industrial scale fishing.
Director: Rupert Murray. Starring: Charles Clover, Jeffrey Hutchings. Narrated by: Ted Danson.
The End of the Line Trailer
“The most efficient predator our oceans have ever known…” isn’t of course the shark, as this documentary shows early on – with shots of those remarkable, intimidating fish being reeled in by fishermen, along with turtles, tuna, etc. It cross-cuts these images with shots of sashimi being eaten.
By the middle of this century, science tells us, all the fish species that usually make it onto our dinner plates will be extinct. As revealed in this sobering documentary by Rupert Murray, this is due to overfishing on a vast and terrifying scale. Drawing mainly on the book of the same title by Telegraph journalist Charles Clover — who is also the prime interviewee — Murray’s research is extensive and convincing.
Now, there’s nothing wrong with people eating seafood – we’ve been doing it for centuries, many subsist on it, and some communities have only come into being through fishing. The problem explored by The End Of The Line is a familiar one from other eco documentaries: there are just so many of us now, and we’re consuming so much, it’s potentially environmentally catastrophic.
It’s a fascinating film, which includes superb underwater scenes shot in protected marine reserves. These no-fishing zones allow fish populations to regenerate, and, as fish are prone to moving about, this also benefits fishermen.
Criticism for The End of the Line
While the film’s message is an important one which should be heard, as with all the eco documentaries that have emerged in the early 21st century, its message focusses on symptoms instead of causes. Man is messing up with our reliance on oil, our fossil fuel burning, with our hacking and burning of the forests, with our population growth – and now even with our enjoyment of a fish supper every now and then. The issue for me isn’t so much that we’re consuming too much fish, it’s that we’re consuming too much – period.
Ever-accelerating human consumption of natural resources lies at the root of many of our global environmental problems. Current consumption patterns stress limited natural resources, (apparently) contribute to global warming, and create wasteful and even toxic by-products that affect the quality of life and the health of communities around the world. Add global population growth to the mix, and it becomes increasingly clear how the health of the ecosystems we depend on for survival are being compromised.
Until we as a species learn to give back instead of taking and consuming everything we can, our planet is doomed. High levels of consumption is the cause; dwindling fish stocks in the world’s oceans is merely one of the results.
Verdict for The End of the Line
A classical, stately documentary, that blends striking imagery with informed commentary to credibly present the facts of another human-shaped, greed-fuelled global environmental train smash. Slightly worrying but very necessary watching.
What did you think of the film? Leave your comments below.
The End of the Line Links
- The End of the Line Official Site
- YouTube End of the Line Channel (with related videos)
- Related movie: Home Project
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I am a global roamer, soul-searcher, contrarian who has challenged the norm since 1975. My goal is to connect with other world-changers to help make sense of life in an increasingly senseless world. 
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