The Lovely Out of Town Tv Series with Jack Hargreaves Volumes 1 to 9 in this superb DVD Box set.
Monday, June 17, 2013
Out of Town Box Set - Vol 1 - 9 [DVD]
Thursday, June 6, 2013
Out of Town Box Set - Vol 1 - 9 [DVD]
The Lovely Out of Town Tv Series with Jack Hargreaves Volumes 1 to 9 in this superb DVD Box set.
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Saturday, April 27, 2013
The Blue Planet - 3 DVD Box Set [2001]
An epic, eight-part series that took five years to complete, The Blue Planet firmly re-establishes the BBC as the world's pre-eminent producer of top quality nature documentaries. Exploring every aspect of marine ecosystems, from coastal marshes to deep-sea trenches and from polar waters to tropical reefs, The Blue Planet is thorough and informative, yet never less than thrilling.
Sir David Attenborough is one of the most well-respected (and well-known) personalities in the field of nature programmes and his narration is flawless as he educates and inspires without patronising his audience or anthropomorphising his subjects. Spectacular camera work (of a standard not seen since the BBC's classic Life on Earth series) captures images of a fascinating world rarely seen by human eyes--in fact, in several instances, the subjects and behaviours filmed for this series have never been witnessed before, let alone caught on camera. This is particularly apparent on the series highlight, "The Deep" (Programme 2), where film crews discovered two new species in the depths of the ocean: a grotesque fish named the Hairy Angler and a fantastic, pink octopus-like creature, which is so new that it remains unnamed (but was nicknamed "Dumbo"). Both are testament to the fact that, although oceans cover two-thirds of the Earth, we know less about them than we do the moon. It is proof that, to us land-dwellers, much of our Blue Planet is alien indeed. A handsomely illustrated companion book is also available. -- Robert Burrow
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Wednesday, March 13, 2013
Planet Earth & Life Box Set [DVD]
Review for Planet Earth [Blu-ray]
Not only is Planet Earth one of the most jaw-dropping, ambitious, nature documentaries the BBC has ever produced, it’s now taken on another role: as a superb demonstration disc for the strength of and Blu-ray.
Spread over a good ten hours, the series charts life and nature in dozens upon dozens of differing locations around the earth. Diligently and warmly narrated by Sir David Attenborough, Planet Earth calmly goes close in on its subject matter when required, and then pulls out some stunning perspective shots that are simply breathtaking. It’s hard to come up with the right superlatives to do the photography on the programme any kind of justice, and that it’s married to such fascinating subject matter is all the better.
And if you think the original broadcast of Planet Earth was something special, or you were gobsmacked by the picture quality on DVD, just wait until you see it in 1080i HD glory. Particularly some of the broader shots here are all but without parallel, and it’s a real reward for those who have invested ahead of the crowd in high definition technology.
Presented over five discs, and matching wonderful content to spot-on visual presentation, Planet Earth is now not just a landmark in nature documentary film making. It’s also a chartermark of quality for just what HD DVD and Blu-ray can offer. A stunning release, in more than one sense. --Jon Foster
Review for Life [Blu-ray]
This enthralling BBC series examines "the lengths living beings go to to stay alive," in the words of Sir David Attenborough. Aided by breathtaking high-definition cinematography, the makers of Planet Earth explore the more colourful strategies the world's creatures employ to procreate, evade predators, and obtain nourishment. Cameras travel though the air, under the water, and right into the faces of insects, like the alien visage of the stalk-eyed fly. Except for "Challenges of Life" and "Hunters and Hunted," each episode covers a different category, such as mammals and birds. Among the more memorable images: three cheetahs move with the relentless rhythm of mobsters, a school of flying fish glides through the air with the grace of ballerinas, and a Jesus Christ lizard skips across the water, like, well, you know. The strangest sights range from a pebble toad bouncing away from a spider like a rubber ball and brown-tufted capuchin monkeys pounding palm nuts with stone tools like the apes in 2001: A Space Odyssey.
Witty writing and skilful editing, which distils thousands of hours of footage, make the learning go down easy (at one point, Sir David references Jurassic Park, which featured his brother, Richard). If the sound effects seem overamped, George Fenton's score is always on the money, adding humour and suspense at crucial moments (martial drums for the mud skippers, woozy brass for the Darwin's beetle). Nonetheless, delicate sensibilities may find some sequences disturbing, as when Komodo dragons feed on a water buffalo or when a leopard seal dines on a penguin (according to Attenborough, the Komodo siege caused the camera operators "emotional turmoil"). More often, the filmmakers capture the moment of impact before moving on. --Kathleen C. Fennessy, Amazon.com