Earth (2009) - Movie Review

Bottom Line: Earth offers a stunning view of our world from top to bottom, presenting an array of animals and landscapes from all over the planet. The harsh realities of nature are handled delicately, so that the film is family friendly; however, there are a couple of sad scenes, and young children may get antsy sitting through all 90 minutes of the documentary.

MPAA Rating: G
Genre: True life adventure
Guide age recommendation: 5 yrs+ (The film is suitable for younger children, if they are able to sit through it.)
Narrator: James Earl Jones

Earth - Overview

Narrated by James Earl Jones, Earth is the first film under the Disneynature label. The documentary provides a stunning look at the planet we call home, featuring creatures and landscapes from the top of the globe to bottom, and highlighting the majestic cycles of transformation the earth undergoes each year as the seasons change. In it's portrayal of wildlife and discussion of climates, the film follows three animal families closely: a mother Polar bear and her two cubs, a mother elephant and her son, and mother and daughter Humpback wales.

Directors Alastair Fothergill and Mark Linfield, the same creative duo behind the acclaimed Planet Earth series, worked their magic to bring Earth to the big screen. The movie was filmed in tandem with the TV series. Viewers will recognize some scenes in the movie from the TV series, but there is also footage that has not been shown before.

Earth - Guide Review

If you have seen the Planet Earth series, you know just what to expect from the Earth movie. The footage is awesome. True, many scenes in the movie are already featured on the TV series, but there is new footage as well. The movie and TV series were shot at the same time, and the directors had both in mind as they captured life in action all over the globe.

The documentary, which covers animals and landscapes all over the world, is tied together by the stories of the three different animal families. The stories convey a profound sense of what life is like for many creatures. The realities are harsh, as the film points out. Some children may be disturbed by images of predators hunting prey. In each case of predator/prey footage, the chase and first moment of capture are shown, but that is all. Blood and gore in the film is extremely minimal.

The plights of some animals are difficult, and the depiction of their hardships may be sad or unsettling to kids. A young elephant gets lost from the herd, and last we see, he is heading the wrong direction. A father polar bear is followed throughout the movie as he desperately searches for food in the warming ice water, but he does not succeed, and he eventually lays down to die.

Often in the movie, viewers will be unsure who to root for -- the predator or the prey. The movie brings to us the raw beauty of the natural world so many of us have lost touch with, and as the scenes awaken our awe, our souls fill with compassion for animals on all levels of the food chain.

To bring balance to the scenes that are heavier and harsh, the film contains some funny and endearing scenes as well. The ending is a finale of celebration and hope. The polar bear father's cubs are his legacy. The circle of life continues on.

I was impressed with something director Mark Linfield expressed in a teleconference just prior to the release of Earth; he said, "We made a very conscious effort to not have a finger wagging, heavy handed, environmental movie because we feel that the best way to effect something useful is to produce a celebration of the planet." The film does point out several problems over the globe that are caused by global warming, but it stays true to it's noble purpose. Earth is an uplifting experience well worth the time and money.

Earth - Further Learning

• The official Earth website contains a link "For Educators" which leads to an abundance of educational material for children of all ages. The materials are rich in photography, facts, and activities.
• Help kids get involved. Empower them to do their part to protect the environment. For ideas, see the kids' section of the EPA's website.

Earth - On Blu-ray

The Blu-ray release of Earth includes a DVD of the movie and two bonus features:

• Filmaker Annotations
• Earth Diaries: The Making of Earth the Movie