Film

Koko: The Gorilla Who Talks to People

A 58-minute documentary about Koko, a western lowland gorilla who learned sign language, and her 40-year relationship with researcher Penny Patterson. It's intimate and strange—part love story, part scientific argument, entirely dependent on whether you believe what you're watching. For anyone curious about animal cognition, interspecies communication, and the blurry line between science and devotion.

Should you watch it?

Watch it if you are drawn to animal behaviour told with patience and a bit of scientific argument, and you don't mind a story where the researchers are as contested as the subject.

Skip it if you want hard evidence settled on screen, since this leans on one woman's word and her own footage, and its gentle, rambling pace may feel slight at under an hour.

What it asks of you: Expect a patient, unhurried watch of home footage and long stretches of Penny and Koko together, with narration doing much of the framing and big questions left to you.

Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.

If you liked this

My Octopus Teacher2020

A filmmaker develops a profound relationship with a wild octopus over a year, exploring consciousness and connection across species. Gorgeously shot, genuinely moving, and asks similar questions about what we can really know of animal minds.

But The pacing is meditative—if you want narrative momentum or clear answers, this won't deliver either. Some find it indulgent.

My Octopus Teacher poster

The Tale of The Princess Kaguya2013

A stunning animated fable about communication, belonging, and the gap between how we see ourselves and how others see us. Visually transcendent, emotionally complex, with surprising thematic echoes of Koko's isolation and yearning.

But It's a folk tale, not a documentary—slow, painterly, and its emotions are embedded in metaphor rather than spelled out. Demands patience.

The Tale of The Princess Kaguya poster

Blackfish2013

An investigation of orca intelligence and captive breeding at SeaWorld that raises hard questions about our relationship with intelligent animals. As unsettling as Koko is moving, but from the same moral territory.

But It's an argument film with a clear villain, which can feel didactic. Some viewers find it manipulative rather than illuminating.

Blackfish poster

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Koko: The Gorilla Who Talks to People

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Arrival2016

Both are fundamentally about whether true communication—understanding, not just transmission—is possible across the boundary of difference. Both end in grief.

A science-fiction film about linguists attempting to communicate with an alien species. It's structured around the same central question as Koko—can language bridge the gap between radically different minds? Profound and beautiful.

But It's speculative fiction, not documentary. The emotional payoff depends on accepting the film's metaphysical premise, which is a leap some won't make.

Arrival poster
More like this (5)

Project Nim2011

Documents another attempt to teach sign language to an ape, following Nim Chimpsky from infancy through adulthood. More troubling than Koko—it reveals the cost of these experiments on the animals themselves.

But It becomes increasingly dark and questions whether Patterson's work was ethical. That's the point, but some find it depressing rather than enlightening.

Project Nim poster

Chimpanzee2012

A Disney nature documentary that follows a young chimp's life in the wild with genuine tenderness. Beautiful cinematography and a reminder of what these animals are like without human intervention.

But It simplifies animal behavior for family audiences. If you want rigorous science, this sanitizes it.

Chimpanzee poster

Planet of the Apes1968

A sci-fi classic that uses ape society to interrogate human civilization. If Koko makes you think about animal intelligence, this flips it—what if they were thinking about us the whole time?

But It's pure genre entertainment, not documentary. The philosophical questions feel secondary to the twist. Some find it dated.

Planet of the Apes poster

The Meerkats2008

Another David Attenborough narration following a meerkat family in the Kalahari. Humane and funny, it shows animal personality without needing us to teach them our language.

But It's a conventional nature doc—no ethical quandaries or relationship drama. If you came for complexity, this is comfort food.

The Meerkats poster

The Elephant Man1980

A poetic documentary following African elephants across seasons. Meditative, visually extraordinary, explores intelligence and emotion in a species we know is deeply social and grieving.

But There's no narrative arc or character study like Koko offers. It's mood and observation rather than story, which some find frustrating.

The Elephant Man poster

People

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Recommended by

Project Nim, Nénette, Project X, One Lucky Elephant