500 pound gorilla in the room
simpcity | 04/15/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"What a heartbreaker this segment of Nature becomes.
Koko is, of course, the first talking (or signing) gorilla. She was later joined by Michael (who also learned to sign), and they became as brother and sister.
Michael is the dark and silent type. One day, in true Real World fashion, he signs us his dark secret. As a young child, he witnessed the capture and slaughter of his mother for bush meat. He survives the slaughter as a pet, but he is traumatized for life.
This DVD broke my heart twice - once while watching, and then again when I heard the news in April 2000 of Michael's sudden death from heart attack (or, rather, broken heart as we know it must have been). Gets 10 stars in my book - five for Koko and five for Michael."
Koko
M. J. Raisor | USA | 11/09/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I showed this to my cultural anthropology class as an introduction to language. They loved it. It gave them a whole different perspective on primate behavior and intelligence."
Interesting and endearing
P. Gaudry | 05/12/2007
(4 out of 5 stars)
"I really enjoyed this short film about Koko. It was amazing to see what this gorilla can express! It definitely sparked an interest for me to pursue some of the other films about her."