Canadian Animal Rights Group Tricks Movie Goers Into Watching Earthlings

One of our top ten vegan and animal rights documentaries was screened for Halloween as “possibly the scariest movie ever created.” For those who have seen the documentary Earthlings, narrated by Joaquin Phoenix, you know the “scariest movie” comment is really no exaggeration.

The Canadian group Kitchener Ontario Animal Liberation Alliance (KOALA) advertised a free movie on Thursday October 27 and attracted 140 people who were expecting to watch a horror film but unknowingly began watching a film documenting the horrors of the treatment of animals in various industries. Medicine Hat News reports that about half of the attendees walked out within the first half hour of the documentary, despite offers of free vegan baked goods, gift cards as well as a “draw for a $200 cash prize if they sat through the screening.”

One person who walked out said that while they could appreciate what the group was trying to do, “to fool people” into a cause was “really wrong.” However, the 70 people estimated to have sat through the entire documentary, according to a video from KOALA on the experiment, “conceded their surprise at being tricked into watching the film, but praised the group for exposing them to footage and issues they had not previously considered.”

Earthlings covers animal mistreatment and abuse in factory farms, puppy mills, laboratories, fur farms and the entertainment industry, and Malcolm Klimowicz, a member of KOALA, defended the group’s actions, stating it was necessary to expose people to the truth of how animals are treated:

“These industries really try to hide how animals are tortured and confined and treated and killed for food and things like that. We brought to light what people don’t know.”

To watch KOALA’s video of their “Scary Movie Challenge,” visit their Facebook page.

Photo Credit: www.unilibrium.net