Planet Earth: The Complete BBC Series [Blu-ray]

Planet Earth: The Complete BBC Series [Blu-ray]

Planet Earth: The Complete BBC Series [Blu-ray]

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Blu-ray details

Actor: David Attenborough
Brand: Warner Brothers
Blu-ray: Region Code 0
Audio: English (Subtitled); Spanish (Subtitled); French (Subtitled); English (Original Language), Dolby Digital 5.1
Format: Box set, Color, Widescreen
Picture Format: 1.78:1
Running Time: 550 minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: 2007-04-24
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Model: E4001
Studio: BBC Worldwide
Product features:

The makers of The Blue Planet present the epic story of life on Earth. Five years in production, over 2000 days in the field, using 40 cameramen filming across 200 locations, this is the ultimate portrait of our planet. A stunning television experience that combines rare action, unimaginable scale, impossible locations and intimate moments with our planet's best-loved, wildest and most elusive cre

Accessories:

Planet Toys Planet Earth Digital Microscope Kit

Blu-ray Reviews of Planet Earth: The Complete BBC Series [Blu-ray]

Blu-ray Review: A Flawed Gem
Summary: 4 Stars

If I could give this 4.5 stars, I would. Everyone should, of course, buy this series and watch it over and over again. But it is not the best nature documentary ever. Just the best one now on Blu-Ray.

To be clear, I am a huge fan of David Attenborough's nature documentaries. I have watched, multiple times, his Living Planet, Life of Birds, Life of Mammals, Life in the Undergrowth, Life in the Freezer, and Blue Planet series. I probably have logged hundreds of hours watching them. To my mind, there is no one alive--apart, perhaps, from E.O Wilson--who communicates enthusiasm for the natural world as effectively as Sir David. I also have a long-standing interest, albeit an amateur one, in biology and evolutionary theory. So in light of the abundance of 5-stars reviews, I expected to be blown away. I was impressed, but not blown away.

In terms of eye-candy, Planet Earth is one of the best nature documentaries ever. The footage of great white sharks is just jaw-dropping. As is the footage of the fungus-infected ants, the birds-of-paradise, the bactrian camels, etc., etc. They are things that only top-notch nature photographers, using top-notch equipment--and waiting days, weeks, or months for the perfect shot--could capture. And in Blu-Ray, it is spectacular.

That said, there is some truth to other reviewer's complaints about video quality. The footage obviously was taken with different equipment, under different lighting conditions, using different technology, etc. There are passages--especially low-light scenes--where there is visible noise. And there are scenes where the producers obviously have used old footage that lacks the clarity of modern high-definition digital equipment. To be fair, these scenes look bad only because the rest of the series looks so good. Still, I'm not sure that I would choose Planet Earth to showcase the capabilities of Blu-Ray technology. A recently produced studio movie--which has the luxury of being lit with artificial light--probably would show better detail. As would a recent Pixar movie, like Cars or Ratatouille, that was originally rendered in 1080p or better.

The reason why I don't give Planet Earth five stars, though, is not because of its photography, which is first rate. It is because the narrative lacks the depth and brio of other Attenborough series. Much of this is because Sir David's role is limited to providing voice-over. In prior series like "Life of Birds," Attenborough appears on-camera, on-location, and provides lucid and personable explanations of interesting natural phenomena--with the animals he is discussing always close at hand. Sir David is the perfect instructor. He is urbane and literate, not afraid of getting dirty or putting himself in hazardous situations, and so infectiously enthusiastic about the subject matter that you just cannot stop watching. Although Attenborough does the voice-over narrative in Planet Earth--at least in this version--he does not appear onscreen and, thus, most of his personal charisma is missing. He just becomes another nature documentary narrator with a British accent.

It may seem an odd objection to a nature documentary that it lacks a human on-screen presence, but I think it is a valid one. Having a human--whether Attenborough or someone else--physically present in the environment being discussed provides a sense of connection to an otherwise alien world. It also provides useful perspective. Being told the Saraha is 125 degrees in the shade is one thing. Seeing a person panting and sweating in the heat is another.

In addition, the narrative in the "Life of . . ." series had much more depth than "Planet Earth." While still being accessible to laypersons, the "Life of . . . " series spent more time on the fascinating biological details. There, it seemed like the "story"--i.e., the biological phenomena--was driving the enterprise. Planet Earth, by contrast, seems much more driven by the images, and less interested in communicating anything of real scientific substance. It reminded me a lot of "Blue Planet." Gorgeous photography, but relatively little meat to it.

One final quibble: the orchestration in Planet Earth is too lavish and melodramatic for my tastes. There are times when I just want to tell the BBC orchestra to ratchet it down a notch or two. This is a nature documentary, for Christ's sake, not War of the Worlds.

In short, Planet Earth is a beautiful series and looks fantastic on Blu-Ray. If you haven't done so already, you should hit the "buy" button. But Planet Earth is not the be-all and end-all of nature documentaries. Although they are not quite as visually arresting, the "Life of . . ." series are, overall, far superior documentaries. Planet Earth is a gem, but a flawed one.

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Description of Planet Earth: The Complete BBC Series [Blu-ray]

With an unprecedented production budget of $25 million, and from the makers of Blue Planet: Seas of Life, comes the epic story of life on Earth. Five years in production, over 2,000 days in the field, using 40 cameramen filming across 200 locations, shot entirely in high definition, this is the ultimate portrait of our planet. A stunning television experience that captures rare action, impossible locations and intimate moments with our planet's best-loved, wildest and most elusive creatures. From the highest mountains to the deepest rivers, this blockbuster series takes you on an unforgettable journey through the daily struggle for survival in Earth's most extreme habitats. Planet Earth takes you to places you have never seen before, to experience sights and sounds you may never experience anywhere else.

As of its release in early 2007, Planet Earth is quite simply the greatest nature/wildlife series ever produced. Following the similarly monumental achievement of The Blue Planet: Seas of Life, this astonishing 11-part BBC series is brilliantly narrated by Sir David Attenborough and sensibly organized so that each 50-minute episode covers a specific geographical region and/or wildlife habitat (mountains, caves, deserts, shallow seas, seasonal forests, etc.) until the entire planet has been magnificently represented by the most astonishing sights and sounds you'll ever experience from the comforts of home. The premiere episode, "From Pole to Pole," serves as a primer for things to come, placing the entire series in proper context and giving a general overview of what to expect from each individual episode. Without being overtly political, the series maintains a consistent and subtle emphasis on the urgent need for ongoing conservation, best illustrated by the plight of polar bears whose very behavior is changing (to accommodate life-threatening changes in their fast-melting habitat) in the wake of global warming--a phenomenon that this series appropriately presents as scientific fact. With this harsh reality as subtext, the series proceeds to accentuate the positive, delivering a seemingly endless variety of natural wonders, from the spectacular mating displays of New Guinea's various birds of paradise to a rare encounter with Siberia's nearly-extinct Amur Leopards, of which only 30 remain in the wild.

That's just a hint of the marvels on display. Accompanied by majestic orchestral scores by George Fenton, every episode is packed with images so beautiful or so forcefully impressive (and so perfectly photographed by the BBC's tenacious high-definition camera crews) that you'll be rendered speechless by the splendor of it all. You'll see a seal struggling to out-maneuver a Great White Shark; swimming macaques in the Ganges delta; massive flocks of snow geese numbering in the hundreds of thousands; an awesome night-vision sequence of lions attacking an elephant; the Colugo (or "flying lemur"--not really a lemur!) of the Philippines; a hunting alliance of fish and snakes on Indonesia's magnificent coral reef; the bioluminescent "vampire squid" of the deep oceans... these are just a few of countless highlights, masterfully filmed from every conceivable angle, with frequent use of super-slow-motion and amazing motion-controlled time-lapse cinematography, and narrated by Attenborough with his trademark combination of observational wit and informative authority. The result is a hugely entertaining series that doesn't flinch from the predatory realities of nature (death is a constant presence, without being off-putting). At a time when the multiple threats of global warming should be obvious to all, let's give Sir David the last word, from the closing of Planet Earth's final episode: "We can now destroy or we can cherish--the choice is ours." --Jeff Shannon

Stills from Planet Earth (click for larger image)

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