So, I’ve been thinking about how to tell a story without words, and I keep coming back to this movie. In my disgustingly oversimplified view, there are three types of nature documentaries: 1) a narrator tells you things about plants and animals, with video of them; 2) intrepid adventurers show you rare creatures you will never have a chance of seeing in real life; 3) filmmakers exploit their medium to highlight aspects of nature we would never pay attention to otherwise. Personally I like when my nature flicks lean towards option 3: I like documentaries that trust the power of their shots, and don’t necessarily depend on narration or how exotic their subjects are.
Which is probably why I differ from everyone I know and prefer Winged Migration to Planet Earth. It went to just as absurd lengths to get the raw footage, but instead of filming creatures bound to get a “wow!” it took boring ole’ geese, went on this crazy mission TO FLY IN THE AIR WITH THEM, and through skillful cinematography, editing, and a perfectly-matched score, turned them into protagonists that are just achingly beautiful.
I wish I could find a higher-definition clip to do this film justice (for those who haven’t seen it). But I think these 3.5 minutes do tell a great story without words, and it could exist in no other medium.
There is something very holistic and pure about the shooting techniques they employed to create this. I also think that the score does a great job in helping to cary the magnanimity of the piece.
My favorite part is how they seamlessly merge what looks like computer animation of the earth with the real footage. I particularly like how they take us into the clouds of their animation to “real” like earth flying around second 25-35. To be honest, I’m not even sure if it’s animation of just extreme HD, but the point is the merging of perspectives by taking us through the clouds which is a nice vehicle.