In late September 2005, documentary filmmaker Mike Shiley learned that in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and FEMA's lackluster rescue efforts, more than 50,000 dogs and cats had been left behind. Packing his belongings, he purchased a plane ticket and made his way to New Orleans.
The story that followed—one both harrowing and heartwarming—is the subject of his new film, ""Dark Water Rising,"" an account of the animals rescued and the volunteers who put their families, jobs and sanity on the line to do it. As a social commentary, ""Water"" is illuminating and important in equal measure. As a film, it's one of the most fascinating of the year.
Opening with a series of tragic tableaux, the film transitions from exterior scenes of devastation to the interiors of rotting houses, where dogs and cats, having survived five weeks without food and water, cower behind couches and bathtubs, desperately awaiting rescue. But despite beginning on a grim note, the film is ultimately one of hope, quickly moving to the efforts of volunteers who crawl in through windows, kick down doors and take crow bars to walls in order to retrieve the animals by any means necessary.
As the film progresses, rather than focusing on a series of repetitive rescues, Shiley wisely structures the narrative around the contrasts that emerge. Scenes of successful rescues and wide-eyed pups are contrasted with tragic stories of pre-Katrina dog fights put on by gang members and profiteers. Similarly, stories of prison inmates nurturing dogs back to health are juxtaposed with those of law enforcement officers torturing and shooting them for sport. Most compelling, however, is the contrast between the efforts of the Humane Society of the United States, and those of a group of renegade rescuers operating out of an abandoned Winn Dixie parking lot.
As opposed to HSUS, a team of professionals operating according to protocol, the Winn Dixie group is presented as a hodge-podge of animal lovers and fanatics. Unfazed by human corpses, many of them cry at the sight of animal carcasses littering the street, baby-talking to rescued dogs while spewing disgust towards their neglectful owners. Braving loose nails, toxic mold and 105 degree heat, they save animals by day, while by night, they fight off post traumatic stress disorder by raiding the Winn Dixie for booze and prescription medications.
While a lesser filmmaker might have depicted such contrasts as a matter of black and white, Shiley uses a rainbow of grays instead, focusing on his subjects without judging, and painting a fascinating psychological portrait in the process. While perhaps not the most dymanic voice to emerge from Katrina (Kanye West, and more recently, Spike Lee come to mind), Shiley's message is not one of outrage, but of an opportunity to learn.
""Dark Water Rising"" is a presentation of the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth, with brief but haunting images like drowned cats and dogs hanging from electric wires. For the brave viewer willing to wallow through the muck, ""Water"" will prove an illuminating experience, serving as both a cultural artifact and an exemplary piece of cinema.
