The understanding that animals in their natural habitat lead a healthier life than caged and displayed animals is, I hope, a generalization that everyone can agree on. Even though this is safe to assume, seeing comparative footage of these two examples can act as such an eye-opener. In Lucy: The Stolen Lives of Elephants, activist/filmmaker Fern Levitt exhibits this same comparative method to educate viewers on the controversies of captured elephants.

As a launchpad for Levitt’s thesis, the documentary focuses on the ongoing protest around freeing the titular geriatric pachyderm kept at the Edmonton Valley Zoo. Levitt then spawns off of this issue, occasionally circling back to Lucy’s story, to cover similar situations in other zoos; such as The Preserve in Fredericksburg, Texas and the Canadian tourist trap African Lion Safari. Resembling an extended news report, Levitt’s film begins as a standard issue doc that properly gives audiences a reason to rally with those who fight for Lucy. The doc, however, truly kicks into a more engaging element when the movie speaks up for animals by any means necessary, including hidden camera interviews.

The audience is given a clear example of how elephants can be properly looked after, and how research can still be collected by impassioned workers, in either a sanctuary or a reserve, without resorting to suspicious malpractices. To drive home its point further, the film toggles from this encouraging footage to Eastern businesses where the monitoring becomes too unnatural to an abusive degree. The covertly-recorded footage is disturbing and upsetting, especially when the viewer is shown how zoo patrons are none the wiser as they observe well-trained elephants.

Lucy: The Stolen Lives of Elephants has a strong opinion and that’s expected. But because Levitt gives the opposition a fair chance to debate, which is usually met with refusals to comment on camera, the documentary ends up being balanced and avoids being propaganda. The doc also benefits from personal stories told by people who are drawing from their own experiences with caged institutions or apathetic poachers for zoos.

The film admirably boasts fearlessness in the name of justice too, considering the African Lion Safari is threatening legal action if the film is released – a detail that’s provided in the press notes and the film’s end credits. Lucy: The Stolen Lives of Elephants has already screened in Toronto, and will have an exclusive screening in Hamilton this month. I doubt the filmmakers will need to re-edit anything, but it wouldn’t be a bad idea to watch this movie sooner than later – to support indie filmmaking and animal rights.

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Addison Wylie: @AddisonWylie