
Both children and animals represent the epitome of innocence. Having either of them suffer or even perish in some way, usually raises the stakes of the narrative and enhances the drama of the overall story. Many times, people such as us who make arguments about movies too often hear the complaints that the death of an animal (a dog or a cat in most cases) has a greater emotional impact than the sometimes disturbing sight of countless violent deaths of human beings in films. Just Google it. There is even a page on the doesthedogdie.com that touches upon this subject.
Now enter the realm of documentaries, where the events depicted on screen are (most of the time) real and therefore more frightening. That is precisely this is the premise of Checkpoint Zoo directed by Joshua Zeman (The Loneliest Whale: The Search for 52), which documents the Russian invasion of Ukraine in the early months of 2022. To be more specific, the film focuses on the selfless and daring attempt of many volunteers to evacuate the animals from Kharkiv’s Feldman Ecopark situated behind the frontlines. The park lies between Kharkiv and the Russian military. This is both a brave and tragic story, and it results in a very emotional film.
It is also a heartwarming story. There is still hope that despite the history of extremes and the cruel nature of human beings, there are still a few who are good. It is amazing to think that these people would try to save such creatures as clumsy and large vicious animals at the risk of their own lives.
Not in the case of the current Russian leadership headed by the disgusting Vladimir Putin, who, interestingly, loves being addressed that way by the so-called ‘West’ the enemies of his nation. I mean first, compounding any logic, he invades a neighboring independent country (yes, even please spare any whining about “Ukraine is not a country”) and urges his men to act as terrorists which apparently, also has to do with attacking animals.
Zeman starts us off with a great background of the Ecopark which was established by businessman Oleksandr Feldman for the benefit of the people, particularly children, so that they can learn about and interact with animals. It’s kind of like a learning facility and a petting zoo. By no means am I a fan of these kinds of buildings (the animals never look content in these places), but considering where we are as a species, they may at times, be the best marines available for the protection of the species’ survival. Yet it cannot be said that the zoo management is usually thinking that these animals will end up getting killed in captivity. That would have been the fate of most if not all of the Ecopark creatures, without the interference from certain inhabitants of Kharkov.
The crew (very small, and we hope it stays that way) exposes itself to danger and takes part in the trenches with volunteers who begin with the weaker creatures and save the big cats for the end (with wolves right before them). In addition to the life-threatening activity of jumping around bombs, the very pithy question of how to keep the animals after they are no longer in direct danger still persists. Where do we put them? Will they be accepted by other zoos? One such temporary solution comes about when Feldman allows the new arrivals (without large feline species that would kill them all) into his house, tennis courts, and other territories owned by him. That man also does not seem to have any qualms in liquidating what businesses he has in order to rescue the creatures. After all, he brought these animals to Ukraine and hence, feels responsible.
Sadly some casualties are suffered in the movie, such as the lion which snatches a person and drags them into the cage, or others being smashed by missiles. But does it halt the evacuation? Not even a bit. There’s even a touching episode where the parents of the killed child face a Russian soldier, who is in captivity, and he bursts into tears. It is terrible to see the war. There are no such sentiments for the leaders who instigated them anyway.
The story is indeed quite captivating so it is worth the time and effort watching the film. At times, it is the easy cop-out of hoping trauma portrayed on screen will move the audience deeply and it becomes somewhat difficult to watch, but that’s regrettably how every film operates nowadays, how Lethal Weapon went. This is a question of editing more than anything but perhaps Zeman should not be criticized too harshly for wanting to leave as much of the worst parts in as possible. Still, he doesn’t need to do that. The situation itself is strong enough. What these remarkable people of Kharkiv do is not only worthy of this powerful filmic tribute, but a thunder of applause that could be heard all over the world.
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