I just got finished watching the first episode of the BBC nature documentary Planet Earth, and it is absolutely stunning. Filmed entirely in high definition, it is just the most beautiful and amazing footage you will ever see. There are aerial shots of hundreds of thousands of migrating birds, shots of thousands of migrating caribou, time lapse photos from the north pole following the sun for more than 24 hours, slow motions action showing great white sharks completely jumping out of the water while striking at seals. It is all truly incredible. And the narration by David Attenborough is subtle and not overbearing. Likewise, the music is appropriate. For the most part, the producers let the amazing photography speak for itself.
So far it seems to focus primarily on wildlife, but it is intermixed with shots of scenery. The mountains are amazing, but what really grabbed my attention were some of the waterfalls. The amount of detail visible is astounding. And some of the sped up video of storm clouds forming are incredible as well. I rarely get so effusive over a DVD.
I don't know if it's something I'd watch over and over, but for $45 for the complete 4 disc series, I'm considering purchasing it. I urge you to check out the clips of it here. The minuscule size of the videos don't do it justice but at least you get a glimpse of what to expect.
Don't confuse it with this other Planet Earth video to also come from the UK. Yes, I hate to admit it, but I did get the Duran Duran song of the same name stuck in my head while watching the documentary. It is, however, far less impressive.
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4 comments:
Yeah, it's pretty cool. I have it on HD DVD, which rated higher than Blu Ray. I strongly urge you to check it out on HD DVD if you haven't already. You could probably get it now for the same price as the regular DVD set.
I've got the HD DVD at home right now from Netflix. The HD is actually cheaper than standard DVD at Netflix right now.
And once they stop making HD, I may have to set up some sort of exchange program with you. Or maybe just steal yours when you aren't looking.
Is this the Planet Earth that Oprah was raving about and Sigorney Weaver narrates some of them?
Yes and no. As I understand it, when the Discovery Channel aired it, they had Sigourney Weaver narrating. So it's the same footage, but the original BBC version had David Attenborough narrating. And the DVD's have him narrating too.
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