The film begins with appropriate warnings about graphic images of poached rhinos, which some viewers should take seriously. I have seen some of the most revolting and horrifying images ever committed to celluloid, but I have never seen things like this. To see a young rhino who miraculously survived with its horn chopped off is from your worst nightmares. Very seldom do you see something that is genuinely an affront to God and his vast creation, but a rhino with the horn ripped off its face is it.
There is a primal reaction to this senseless atrocity, as there is literally no reason this should be happening. Powdered rhino horn has all the medicinal value of eating your own toenails. To risk losing one of our core creatures to bullshit like this is unfathomable.
The cinematography by John Jurko II and Nick Smith is both breathtaking and horrifying. We get to see the most beautiful parts and the most terrible parts of the African bush. You can easily see when dealing with the rhinos what marvelous animals they are, particularly the baby ones in the rhino orphanage.
“…an eye-opener that will stampede your perspective wide open.”
The dedication it takes to preserve the rhino’s existence is endless by necessity, as the odds are stacked against the rangers. That they can be murdered in broad daylight as well as have their families targeted is just the daily life price for this vocation. This is why the training camp sessions are so exciting, as there is a reality show buzz to see the limits being pushed.
But the directors harness that excitement and then steer you into the black chasms of poaching horrors. The point is made very well repeatedly, its presence felt throughout the film like that of the departed Martin Mthembu. Though we don’t get to speak to him directly, his importance is imparted along with his lifelong work protecting rhinos.
As executive director of the Lawrence Anthony Earth Organization, Yvette Taylor says onscreen, “If we lose the rhino, we’ll lose the elephant. We’ll lose the lion. And so you go down the list. You must know at some point, man will be on that list.”
So even if it hits harder than you are used to, please put Rhino Man on your watch list. It will do wonders for your humanity.
"…These rangers are the real superheroes."
