Mission Blue is a documentary about famed oceanographer, Dr. Sylvia Earle, and her passion for the ocean. Dr. Earle’s lifelong mission is to bring public awareness to the current state of the ocean and to protect it like we do with national parks. The film dives deep into her journey as an oceanographer, the vast beauty of our oceans, and the importance of understanding it for the sake of all living things.

Many of us know the ocean by what we see at the beach, never diving or looking further. With Mission Blue, we join Dr. Earle as she dives deep into the unknown waters to see beyond a couple hundred feet, to miles below the ocean. We saw the effects of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill (the largest marine oil spill in the history of the petroleum industry), overfishing, climate change, and plastic pollution. It’s shocking and sad to see a place that was once brimming with colorful corals and diverse sea animals, consumed by plastic bags, fishing nets, and dead corals. The ocean that was alive with life, is now dark and bleak.

It’s difficult not to feel hopeless with the images presented, but still (maybe because we’re too optimistic), we were uplifted by Dr. Earle’s passion for the ocean. She states in an interview, “If we fail to take care of the ocean, nothing else matters.” And it’s true. The ocean plays a large part in balancing our ecosystem and sustaining life on Earth. The film truly made us reflect on our own everyday habits & actions. We hope this film brings about a new perspective on everyone who sees it too.

“In the same way that humans have the ability to consciously shift the balance of the Earth, which we’ve done, we also have the capacity and capability of stopping it.” – Michael deGruy

You can watch Mission Blue on Netflix now.

Cheers,
Jennifer and Vivian