MUST SEE chimp documentary 'Project Nim' (not for kids)
top film critic Roger Ebert, may he rest in peace, raved about this incredible yet true documentary following the peaks and valleys life of chimpanzee Nim, originally raised as just one of the kids in a suburban NYC family.
Nim was placed there by a [arguably lecherous] professor's research project into the animal's human language learning abilities, hoping to equal the famous study of lowland gorilla Koko out west.
Project Nim's Director James March is same film-maker who created the stunning Oscar Documentary winner "Man on Wire (2008).
more about Project Nim (2011) here:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1814836
http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/project-nim-2011
ROGER EBERT: ...There comes a point after which a chimp can no longer safely be kept as what we might call a house pet. This is not the fault of the chimp, which is programmed by evolution to develop anger and other self-protective mechanisms. Chimpanzees are five times as strong as humans of the same weight, and you don't want one to grow impatient with you. In the film, various handlers show the scars on arms, legs and cheeks of Nim's aggression.
After severely biting one researcher on the cheek, Nim signs: "Sorry." But is Nim truly sorry, or is that merely the sign he learned to use after sensing human displeasure? ...
ultimately our prof abandons the study, apparently to chase skirts elsewhere,
throwing Nim into terrifying danger.
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'Dr Horrible's Singalong Blog'(last words): "Don't worry. Captain Hammer will save us." share