Earthlings Screened as Halloween Horror Flick

Last Thursday, Canadian animal-rights group The Kitchener Ontario Animal Liberation Alliance (KOALA) showed vegan documentary Earthlings to a group of 140 viewers at the Princess Twin Cinemas in Ontario, Canada. Screened just before Halloween, KOALA did not reveal the name of the film prior to the screening, rather, they simply advertised it as “possibly the scariest movie ever created.” Viewers were treated to free vegan cupcakes, cookies, and candy, and offered a $200 cash prize should they sit through the entire screening. Half of the viewers exited the theater within the first 30 minutes of the film, stating they felt KOALA falsely-advertised the film as a horror movie—a claim the animal-rights group stands by. “People came expecting to see a terrifying horror movie,” KOALA member Malcolm Klimowicz says, “but it’s terrifying in the sense that it was real life.” Those that made it through the entire screening—a total of 63 individuals—had positive reactions. “I can really understand the parallels to other social justice movements that humans have faced,” one viewer said. “I myself am a person of color and a gay man. I am also a meat-eater. Now I am going to start talking to people about how we treat animals and make some changes.”