Although deserving its 12A certificate, The Cove contains moments guaranteed to have young 'uns crying into their happy meals.

Notably, footage of a mortally wounded baby dolphin attempting to flee harpoon wielding fishermen that is up there with Simba's dad croaking in The Lion King.

But, National Geographic photographer turned director Louis Psihoyos brings more than just shock and anger to this compelling account of one man's near-four decade quest for justice.

That man is Ric O'Barry, the animal trainer on Flipper, the show that created the billion dollar sea world theme parks industry.  When the lead dolphin died in his arms, a Damascus-like conversion put him on the road to campaigning against captivity and slaughter.

Which is why he spends so much of his time in Taiji, a Japanese seaside town that regularly herds dolphins for capture (with theme parks paying $150,000 for each mammal) and slaughters the rest (where there meat brings just $600) in a tranquil cove hidden by treacherous rocky hills.

Cue a Mission: Impossible style operation to get the butchering on camera, with the activists and film crew braving the razor wire and patrols to install recording equipment (hidden in fake rocks created by former ILM employees).

Also flapping on the end of O'Barry's hook is the Japanese government's shady dealings at the International Whaling Commission, investing in small Caribbean islands with no whale industry to secure their support in important IWC votes.  

Even more troubling is that the toxic dolphin meat is sold as whale meat to an unsuspecting Japanese public, and that the meat almost found its way into school dinners as part of a PR exercise.

Unsurprising then that The Cove was initially refused entry into 2009's Tokyo International Film Festival, finally appearing as a barely publicised "additional screening".

But, expect it to appear at 2010's Oscars.  And proof that movies can make a difference is that in September 2009, the Taiji fisherman chose to release the dolphins not sold to seaquariums rather than kill them.  

They claimed it had nothing to do with The Cove.

Rob Daniel