[3] Fearing that ancestral culinary traditions will disappear, director Keiko Yagi decided to investigate and understand what motivates regular attacks against Japan on whaling.

For four months, Keiko Yagi interviewed the various protagonists of the film "The Cove", from its director to the people of Taiji through the official organizations and the militant associations.

It's too scattershot to be persuasive, even if occasionally it sparks thought about issues of cultural tradition, unfair international agreements, and nationalistic defensiveness.

"[4] Luke Y. Thompson of The Village Voice was also critical of the film, writing, "Japan's answer to the Oscar-winning, 2009 anti-dolphin-hunting documentary The Cove is driven more by agenda than much discernible skill in the areas of camera, editing, storytelling, or interview technique."

He added, "Probably about a quarter of the film's runtime is screenshots of web browsers, which is apt, as this is essentially a Condescending Wonka meme taken to feature length.