The Last Animals

I saw this documentary at the Bend Film Festival and highly recommend it. The filmmaker, Kate Brooks, is a photojournalist who traveled to SE Asia, Africa (DRC, Tanzania, etc), Switzerland and elsewhere to examine the problem of elephant and rhino poaching. The cinematography is superb, Brooks gets so up close and personal with the park rangers, poachers, and ivory vendors that you feel like you're right there with her.

Brooks follows the story of how poachers have caused the extinction of the Northern White Rhino, and makes a powerful case that if we don't act now, elephants could also someday become extinct. The film gives the viewer a chance to meet people who are trying to protect these animals along with those who are poaching them. It's not overly preachy but the visual evidence of the poaching carnage often speaks for itself.