MovieChat Forums > Water for Elephants (2011) Discussion > Elephant Scenes are CGI, however...

Elephant Scenes are CGI, however...

posted 13 years ago by Jimmy68711
3 replies | jump to latest

Yes the abuse in the movie are CGI, but outside of the movie this elephant, Tai, was very much abused. When you're watching the movie, you're pretty much watching reenactments of the abuse she went through, a fraction of the abuse. She was trained from "Have Trunk Will Travel". Here is the video of the training that these elephants go through (It may be too graphic for some, and will be discarded by many) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaCwhXx4O8c

At the end it lists a number of movies that this company has featured elephants:
Evan Almighty
Jungle Book
George of the Jungle
Vanity Fair
Larger than life
Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls
Operation Dumbo Drop
Zookeeper

[–] TheChamCham 11 years ago

Brendan Fraser worked with Tai in "George of the Jungle" and "Looney Tunes: Back in Action" and loves and respects animals to the point that he took constant abuse from the 'cute' capuchin monkey in the GOTJ with good humour. Knowing his outspoken personality, I cannot believe he would have stood by while any animal was being abused.Tai has been in so many films, wouldn't she have had a meltdown by now and hurt someone if all of the abuse was true? Also, where are the Animal Actors monitors ?

"I say,open this door at once! We're British !"

[–] sammie1863 11 years ago

The same can be said of everyone involved in this film. The author herself, who was onset, is a huge animal rights advocate as are the director and several of the actors.
The group who took the video waited more than five years to release the tapes when this film premiered. Largest impact was the claim. The problem is, they missed key opportunities to change laws in California that could have eliminated these sorts of practices (which I don't believe, sadly, have been outlawed). I guess name recognition for your rights group and cause is more important than the animals currently suffering.

[–] spookyrat1 11 years ago

I really find it hard to believe that in a movie that condemns violence to animals (and humans) the elephant star is alleged to have been abused in the training she underwent for the cameras.

Surely not?