Following a determined explorer and his 16 proteges, driven by a dream deemed crazy by others, Dream Ocean (夢想海洋) is one of those documentaries made to appeal to a general audience. After all, what is there not to like about a group of individuals striving to achieve the impossible? The premise has the necessary elements for a story that promises plenty of drama and passion.
But what makes the documentary genuine and heartfelt is its protagonist Su Tar-zen (蘇達貞), a 63-year-old oceanographer devoted to promoting Taiwan’s ocean literacy, or the understanding of human influence on the ocean and vice versa.
The film opens with Su carefully examining the design of a canoe on his porch by the sea in Hualien. It is part of the grand plan the retired professor initiated last year, along with 16 selected young men and women from around the country. The goal: to voyage around the world in a canoe.
Photo courtesy of Hualien Media
The seafarers’ first mission will entail paddling from Hualien to Okinawa to Hawaii and finally, San Francisco.
For the next 90 minutes, the film follows the group of adventurers as they train in open water and learn to build their own vessels by hand. These “marine backpackers” can’t afford fancy stuff. They experiment, conserve and try to use as little resources as possible to make the canoe.
In the eyes of others, their endeavor is nothing short of dangerous. One sailcloth merchant, for example, stares at the young mariners in disbelief after realizing what they plan to do and says, “You’d better buy a lot of insurance. I have absolutely no faith in my products.”
Photo courtesy of Hualien Media
For the most part, director Wang Wei-hsiang (王威翔) keeps the story buoyant and brisk, but social criticism occasionally seeps in. One such moment occurs when a crew member complains about how the water is “polluted and oily” after they paddle along the shore of Mailiao (麥寮) in Yunlin County, where the sixth naphtha cracker (六輕) plant looms.
The film hits its most poignant and emotional note when the audience discovers the reason why Su dedicates all his time, efforts and lifelong savings to found and manage the Jonathan Su Foundation (蘇帆海洋文化藝術基金會), which aims to cultivate a better understanding of the ocean and promote marine conservation, while encouraging ocean canoeing in particular.
In 2007, the oceanographer’s son, Jonathan, died in a diving accident. Before the accident, the father promised his son, also a marine enthusiast, that they would canoe around Taiwan together.
Su is keeping his promise.
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