In the distant Alaskan village of Gambell on St. Lawrence Island within the Bering Sea, students are allowed 10 excused absences a 12 months to earn a living, primarily hunting. “If you don’t make a living, you die,” the principal says within the documentary “One with the Whale,” airing this week on public television as a part of Independent Lens.
Directed by Peter Chelkowski (whose credits include the NatGeo series “Life Below Zero: First Alaskans”) and environmental journalist Jim Wickens, the film is about many things without delay: climate change; Poverty; parents fearful about their teenagers; the attempt to take care of traditions despite dwindling resources; and online bullying from activists when 16-year-old Chris Apassingok successfully hunts his first whale.
“One with the Whale” primarily follows the Apassingok family, but additionally captures a broader context of life in Gambell, where the population is primarily Yup'ik indigenous and numbers fewer than 700 people. Everything must be flown in, which is pricey. When Mom goes grocery shopping on the Gambell Native Store, she says they spend $300 to $500 every week on groceries. She holds up a box of Minute Instant Rice: $11.29. A six-pack of bathroom paper costs $13. Fresh products are briefly supply. As a result, greater than 80% of their eating regimen comes from subsistence hunting. One whale can feed your entire village for months.
Even though it's snowing all over the place (no cars in sight, just four-wheelers and snowmobiles), Chris' father is fearful concerning the lack of ice out on the water. “The walrus and the seal travel with the ice. Without this ice there is no game and no food.”
We learn that web service was introduced relatively recently in Gambell, but almost everyone on camera has a smartphone. In 2017, Chris caught his first whale and the photos were shared on Facebook. He was celebrated locally as a provider. But a whole lot of 1000’s of hateful messages and death threats poured in from people outside the community, especially followers of Paul Watson, known for the fact series “Whale Wars.” A teacher at Chris' school is horrified: “It's crazy to tell a 16-year-old from rural Alaska – where suicide rates are higher than any other part of the country – to kill himself.” The experience is visible Effect on Chris, who is nice and silly but becomes withdrawn and grumpy. He doesn't wish to confer with the filmmakers or his mother about it, and it's unclear whether he felt he could confer with anyone about his feelings. This is a consistent finding with online bullying, with the added subtext that this tight-knit community, unfamiliar with the dark side of social media, can also be at a loss. (The filmmakers focus specifically on the people of Gambell and don’t interview Watson.)
“Chris is simply doing something his ancestors have done for thousands of years,” says the principal. “It's not like they exit and pull a whole lot of whales out of the ocean, not like in Japan. According to the Whaling Commission, they’re allowed to catch two whales a 12 months, and that feeds the community.” Without the meat within the freezer, he adds, the village could die out.
It's complicated. The Apassingoks are a loving family who care about Chris' well-being but additionally grapple with the universal issues surrounding insecurity and precarity. But the filmmakers leave certain details frustratingly vague. What is the structure and rhythm of every day life in Gambell? How do Chris' parents earn cash? What jobs are there on the island? Are hunters more cautious about sharing photos? How is Chris now, all these years later? What mental health resources can be found in a village this size?
In the film, the eldest daughter Nalu is eighteen and her fingers are burning. “I'm not entirely gay,” she says with slightly giggle, “but I'm not really into boys either.” She's still figuring it out – or at the very least discuss it. She eventually moves to Anchorage, where there are bowling alleys, Vietnamese restaurants and a girlfriend. However, she occasionally feels homesick. “It's amazing that we not only survived for thousands of years, but that we thrived – at least until the white man came along. Paul Watson's attack on my brother is really nothing new. It started with the Yankee whalers, who decimated our whale population and left us nearly starving. Then came the missionaries with their crosses and boarding schools. “Kill the Indian, save the man,” I feel that was their motto. Now they’ve given us climate change. So Paul Watson and his followers are only the most recent in an extended line of (idiots).”
It's price noting that the filmmakers capture a successful whale hunt on camera in case you'd quite not see that. Like any worthwhile documentary, “One With the Whale” is a window into the lives of others and is treated with as much respect and sensitivity as one might expect from filmmakers outside the community.
“One with the Whale” – 3 stars (of 4)
Where to see: Wednesday, 8:30 p.m. ET on select PBS channels as a part of Independent Lens. (It will air three more times before the top of the week.)
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