Project Nim, a profound and poignant examination of man and his closest relative, the chimp

Project Nim, A-

Project Nim is a phenomenal film from James Marsh, Oscar winning director of Man on Wire. I saw this in late April at the Independent Film Festival of Boston, where it was received with a standing ovation. For me, it elicited excitement, curiosity, outrage and tears.

It’s the story of Nim, a chimp who was raised and nurtured like a human child in the 1970s. The experiment attempted to examine communication, and the possibility of creating effective complex communication between man and his closest relative, the chimp. The Sundance Film Festival guide accurately called the film an  “unflinching, unsentimental biography of an animal we tried to make human. What we learn about Nim’s true nature – and indeed our own – is comic, revealing, and profoundly unsettling.”

I expect this film to be nominated for the Best Documentary Oscar in 2012, as the film is made expertly, and strongly stimulates both one’s intellect and emotions.

The film premiered at Sundance Film Festival 2011, where it received universal praise (and continues to at 97% on RT currently) and won the Best Directing Award for World Documentary.