David Balding’s lifelong dream was to own an elephant, and in 1984 he fulfilled it by acquiring Flora, an African elephant, in 1984. After having her as the centerpiece of his St. Louis circus for 16 years, however, Balding realized a change in the pachyderm and knew exactly what was causing it: elephants are social creatures and she had not seen another elephant in 10 years. Thus began his search to find a new, safe home for his beloved pet, a nine year search that was documented by director Lisa Leeman and made into the film One Lucky Elephant.
It’s an overused adjective when trying to describe elephants, but majestic is really the only word that does them justice. Huge, amazing creatures, they are almost human in their actions and emotions and Leeman succeeds in bringing this to her documentary. The story is not Operation Dumbo Drop; it’s not overly saccharine, but actually bittersweet. While the story certainly has its highs, this is the story of a man who is forced to let go of a beloved pet, something that many of us have experienced in our own lives (though most of us don’t own dogs that weigh over two tons).
What brings the film to a higher level is the message that it presents. Despite being in love with the creature – Balding’s wife occasionally thinks of herself as “the other woman” – and performing with her for the better part of two decades, elephants are wild creatures that are not meant to be held in captivity for our amusement. But while the message is present, Leeman’s film also doesn’t hit you over the head with it as many documentaries are wont to do. The film lets the audience look into Flora’s eyes and watch her interactions with the other elephants to determine whether she should stay with Balding or if she should be allowed to be set free.
Filmed over the nine year period that Balding looked for Flora’s new home, the biggest detraction from the film is the filming itself. Filmed with multiple film formats of varying qualities, the scene transitions are often jarring, going from a segment filmed with an HD camera to others made with beta. It wouldn’t be a major issue, but the film also makes use of archive footage from the 1980s and 1990s that isn’t marked as such, making those parts harder to differentiate than the portions made with lower quality film. Obviously technology has changed a great deal over the last decade, and Leeman and her crew were simply trying to make the film look as good as possible, but it ends up doing the film a disservice.
The story of David Balding and his pet Flora is a fantastic story well told. For having such a long filming period, the movie’s pacing is right on and the varying emotional levels keep the audience invested in the ringleader’s mission. By the end of the film the audience is left questioning whether or not the final decision is the right one for the animal, but it’s that very debate that propels the film.
For more coverage from the 2010 Los Angeles Film Festival click here.
