#1
Posted: 6/28/05 at 11:49am
In the midst of all the over-hyped, created to the lowest common denominator, Hollywood summer blockbuster space-filler re-hash is a limited US release of the French documentary MARCH OF THE PENGUINS. This is an eighty minute traditional nature film created in co-operation with National Geographic. The narration for the US release has been redone by Morgan Freeman.
It is filled with breathtaking scenery, and an unprecedented glimpse into the lives of Earth’s remotest species, the Emperor Penguin. Following along through the course of a full year in their life-cycle, it provides an opportunity to be present in a place where very few of us will ever get to be in person.
Of particular meaning is the sharing of the breeding process – Emperor males are more involved in the bringing of life than almost any other species – and the communal sense of protection and support in their forbidding environment.
Initially, it is only playing at four theatres nationwide (two each in NY and LA,) but will then be expanded into limited release in other major cities. This past weekend, playing on only four screens, it managed to come in 28th on the weekend boxoffice charts with a per-screen average over $34,000 (for contrast, the number one movie, BATMAN, had a per screen average of a little over $7000.) The audiences have been comprised of every age and background, and have embraced and warmly applauded this film.
So, if you happen to have it available as an option, I’d recommend considering it as an alternative. It could be a fabulous reminder that we are not the center of reality, and perhaps don’t have a handle on what it means to live together in peace.
It is filled with breathtaking scenery, and an unprecedented glimpse into the lives of Earth’s remotest species, the Emperor Penguin. Following along through the course of a full year in their life-cycle, it provides an opportunity to be present in a place where very few of us will ever get to be in person.
Of particular meaning is the sharing of the breeding process – Emperor males are more involved in the bringing of life than almost any other species – and the communal sense of protection and support in their forbidding environment.
Initially, it is only playing at four theatres nationwide (two each in NY and LA,) but will then be expanded into limited release in other major cities. This past weekend, playing on only four screens, it managed to come in 28th on the weekend boxoffice charts with a per-screen average over $34,000 (for contrast, the number one movie, BATMAN, had a per screen average of a little over $7000.) The audiences have been comprised of every age and background, and have embraced and warmly applauded this film.
So, if you happen to have it available as an option, I’d recommend considering it as an alternative. It could be a fabulous reminder that we are not the center of reality, and perhaps don’t have a handle on what it means to live together in peace.
but I really think it's beautifully done. Everyone in the theatres I've seen it in so far has loved it!
