Synopsis
In 1977, acclaimed director Barbet Schroeder and cinematographer Nestor Almendros entered the universe of the world’s most famous primate to create the captivating documentary Koko: A Talking Gorilla. The film introduces us to Koko soon after she was brought from the San Francisco Zoo to Stanford University by Dr. Penny Patterson for a controversial experiment—she would be taught the basics of human communication through American Sign Language. An entertaining, troubling, and still relevant documentary, Koko: A Talking Gorilla sheds light on the ongoing ethical and philosophical debates over the individual rights of animals and brings us face-to-face with an amazing gorilla caught in the middle.
Cast
| Penny Patterson | |
| Saul Kitchener | |
| Koko |
Credits
| Director | Barbet Schroeder |
| Associate producers | Dale Djerassi and Barbet Schroeder |
| Cinematography | Nestor Almendros |
| Additional footage | Ned Burgess |
| Editing | Denise De Casabianca and Dominique Auvray |
| Production | Margaret Menegoz |
| Production assistant | George Csicsery |
Disc Features
- New, restored digital transfer supervised and approved by director Barbet Schroeder
- New video interview with Schroeder
- Alternate French-language audio track with optional English subtitles
- Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard of hearing
- PLUS: A new essay by author Gary Indiana and an homage to Koko from Marguerite Duras
From the Current
Barbet and Koko: An Equivocal Love Affair
by Jul 10, 2006Barbet Schroeder is a director who prefers the appellation “explorer” to that of “auteur,” and again and again his films demonstrate both his intense curiosity about the unexplored and his willingness to allow material he discovers to speak for itself, leaving the viewer to draw whatever inferences...
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