This documentary is beautifully filmed, accented sweetly with slow gentle wild life shots. It’s inspiring and uplifting. It floats on the alluring peace of Jane Goodall. Listening to her, is like listening to Gandhi. She’s got something very few people have -- a warm fulfilled calm, a certainty of mission, a love for life, and a convincing hope. She loves the planet, and she loves her chimps (although chickens wind up getting the short end of the stick).
A satisfying quantity of early film footage of a very young Goodall hangin’ with chimpanzees opens and captivates. But, this is not a save the monkey film. It's a save the planet film. It’s a bait and switch, where the product you take home is bigger and better than the one you thought you bought.
“We're the most intelligent life on this planet, so why are we destroying the planet?” Jane says to the camera as if she’s talking with an old friend, or a new one. She’s so relaxed, she’s so welcoming. She's so inspiring, you just might take up a root or chute. She's a treasure. The film's a treasure see it.
It’s not without its faults and she’s not without her contradictions, and it certainly feels as if she didn’t just agree to this production, but probably produced it herself. Nonetheless, as daily distractions mount, quality (as in not whiny, as in hopeful, as in solution-oriented) reminders to appreciate life and Earth seem to be growing fewer. And older people sharing their wisdom in order to better the planet (while not running for office) are in short supply.
-- Click here to see Books by Ross Anthony, Author --
|