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Film honors rescuers of Katrina’s animal victims

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By Linda Cook | Sunday, September 17, 2006 | 1 comment(s)

Sometimes, a film is so compelling it’s difficult to find the words that describe it.

Such is the case with the superb but chilling “Dark Water Rising.”

Filmmaker Mike Shiley was on hand for post-Hurricane Katrina animal rescues and terrible discoveries of dead pets. He spares his viewers nothing, although he never exploits the animals who lost their lives.

A dead cat is removed from a roadway. A small dog and a cat cower under the tub in the bathroom of an abandoned home. “America is letting the animals down,” says one rescuer.

After Hurricane Rita struck, the animal rescue is halted for three days. Shiley continues filming while unbelievably emaciated animals are rescued — and somehow find the strength to wag their tails.

Rescuer Kim Upham, of Portland, Ore., says she felt helpless watching TV “and not being able to do anything” so she goes to New Orleans to help.

Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) President Wayne Pacelle leads volunteers at a shelter where cage after cage, row after row of rescued animals need to be fed, walked, cleaned and have their medical needs met. In one case, two litters of kittens are being fostered by one cat. Many of those rescued are pit bulls and rottweilers.

The HSUS volunteers have gone through the proper channels to become part of that initiative. Elsewhere, in the parking lot of an inoperable Winn-Dixie supermarket, another band of rogue volunteers has set up shop.

These are people who will stop at nothing to rescue an animal. “I see their faces in my dreams every night,” one volunteer says. “It’s a bad situation and there’s no good thing to do.”

This is an important film, and it should be seen by every caring individual, particularly those who care about animals. It isn’t easy to watch, and it certainly isn’t a show for small children.

Shiley’s camera work and up-close presentation of exhausted, adrenalin-fueled rescuers emphasize the squalid mess through which the volunteers made their way and in which the animals survived. In scenes that may bring you to tears, he shows the grit and determination that led rescuers to recover animal after animal. The epilogue will likely bring a lump to your throat, too.

This is a movie about courage. It could renew your faith in the human — and animal — spirit. Lindas’ rating: HHHH

Linda Cook can be contacted at lcook@qctimes.com.