'Planet Earth' - High-Def Digest review

[jed]

HD DVD fans, meet your new high-def demo disc. Just posted Peter's review of 'Planet Earth: The Complete Series,' and happily for all those who pre-ordered this one, it doesn't disappoint. While the overall grade gets dragged down by a lack of supplements, it still gets an enthusiastic recommend from Peter, who says that you're looking for the best shot-on-HD HD DVD release available today, 'Planet Earth' should be your five-star first choice.

Full review here:
http://hddvd.highdefdigest.com/planetearth.html

[chris gerhard]

Great series. I have recorded it to D-VHS and won't buy it on disc, but everybody needs to see this. Great wow factor for friends that want to look at Blu-ray or HD DVD. I thought this might be a big seller for both formats, but I haven't seen numbers yet that make me think I was right, in fact just the opposite based on the early numbers. It may eventually be a great seller, I sure hope so.

Chris

[onavarr8]

I cannot wait to get my copy in the mail. I bought it from the Warner store but it still shows up as "Processing", so hopefully they will ship it soon....even though the already charged me for it like few days ago....

[Polaris75]

5 star video seemed like it was going to be a bit of a given on this one to me ... to me, the problem is the bar keeps getting pushed, and the previous thing to "push the bar" is not being re-evaluated in light of the new "bar" ... anyone know what I mean? Or am I just nuts? I personally would like to see re-reviews of some of the older titles that got 5-stars now that the reviewers have seen *so* much more content ... that would make things like this 5-star video review carry more weight for me ...

[HomeTheatreFreak]

Overall a pretty weak review IMO. Its almost like this reviewer doesn't know the difference between a documentary and a blockbuster Hollywood movie and it seems he is continually trying to make the one into the other during his viewing experience and he even uses the hollywood blockbuster reference early in the review. The fact that he ultimately ends up complaining about the intentional overall presentation of this material is mind boggling. little vignettes about our planets different ecosystems is exactly what this series is about and for people to turn around and say its a weak way to present the material is literally mind boggling to me.

Then you have the not as emotionally satisfying as March of the Penguins comment, LOL. I honestly dont even know what to say to a comment like that except did we watch the same Planet Earth series? I dont know if its just that this is so long, at 530 minutes, that this reviewer just got lost in terms of how he should feel emotionally or if he really genuinely feels that Planet Earth wasn't as emotional of a viewing as a 1 hour and 20 minute penguin documentary but I really could care less and actually feel sorry for someone that ultimately walks away from this series saying something like that because in the end they obviously missed the big picture of this documentary and that is a celebration of this planet and its marvelous ecosystems and wildlife.

Then you have the part of this review that actually makes the point to tell us that this is no groundbreaking documentary form with the basic narrative approach used as if this was a negative thing, lol. My question to this reviewer is just what form of documentary should they have gone with? I guess they should have just ditched the narration altogether and just let this be a bunch of pretty images on the screen with no voice over at all. Again this is just an utterly mind boggling statement to make about this series. Its almost as if this reviewer doesn't even understand the documentary form of film making at all and is faulting this series for not coming up with some brand new way of showing a documentary instead of sticking with the current mold. That is as ridiculous as giving a hollywood film a lower score for being the same kind of film we always see instead of not coming up with some groundbreaking new way to tell a story on film, its just ridiculous.

The more I look at this review the more I am convinced that this reviewer just shouldn't be reviewing documentary films and should stick with Hollywood based productions. In the end I couldn't disagree more with alot of what he has said in this review. I think the overall approach to this documentary, taking small 1 hour vignettes of our planets major ecosystems, is groundbreaking in itself at least in the scope that it is used in this series. There are so many things in this series that are groundbreaking that it would take a 5 page paper to be able to touch on all of them. Between this and The Blue Planet we have what are without a single doubt the 2 best nature documentaries ever produced and the statements this reviewer made in regards to this series are in the end comical at best. As I said before I ultimately feel sorry for someone that walks away from this series saying the things that he did because it really does show that they just missed the overall message of this series and that really is a shame and it certainly isnt because of the material.

Back in my film class in art school we devoted an entire 5 weeks to reviewing. During that time one of the concepts we spent a good deal of time on was the concept that anyone viewing a film with the intention of making a review will ultimately in the end have a very different viewing experience than people who are just watching it for entertainment's sake. The reviewer takes himself out of that seat as he is looking at the film in a completely different way and ultimately the reviewer's experience will actually be one that can be very different than someone who is just kicking back and watching it. Now I really dont know if this is one of the reasons why this reviewer has ultimately ended up with an experience very different from not only myself but from every other person I know that has seen it but it is certainly worth mentioning as a possibility.

In the end Planet Earth does what it set out to do and that is a huge huge understatement. Again this and The Blue Planet are without a single doubt the 2 best nature documentaries ever put on film and nothing else out there is even in the same ballpark. If you were disappointed that this series didn't come with lossless sound or is devoid of extras and you want to use those as a basis to lower this series overall score then that is your choice and one that I wont even argue with even tho I completly disagree. However when I see a reviewer start to fault this documentary for things such as using the basic narration approach instead of inventing some brand new way of viewing documentaries I have to draw the line. In the end this reviewers complaints are not only petty but ultimately ridiculous. If this series doesn't deserve a 5 star rating in terms of The Movie Itself category then I dont know what does and its an unattainable rating for this reviewer.

[LizardMan101]

I've gotta agree with HomeTheatreFreak with an addition: I personally thought George Fenton's score was remarkable; topping most anything that has come out for film or TV as of late.

[HomeTheatreFreak]

Originally Posted by LizardMan101

I've gotta agree with HomeTheatreFreak with an addition: I personally thought George Fenton's score was remarkable; topping most anything that has come out for film or TV as of late.

Its just another aspect of this series and one that is overlooked by alot of people. This series really is from the ground up a remarkable achievement for film regardless of what category you want to put it in. Every single aspect from the score to the cinematography to the editing to the research to the subject matter is top notch across the board. This series has raised the bar for nature documentaries like Star Wars raised the bar for science fiction films back in the late 70's. The fact that this release was given a 3.5 star overall score with a 4 star content score on this site is really quite shocking & unbelievable.

[divian]

I would not pay a lot of attention in the content part of the reviews on High Defintion web sites.
I usually concentrate in the AQ and PQ section. I do not expect these reviewers to be movie critics. They are not.
I actually hate to see a movie like "Night at the museum" with four stars in the movie itself section.
I like Peter M. Bracke reviews. I do not think we should expect them to be movie reviewers.
He is very good on the technical part of the review.

[joeymac]

"ambitious than say a 'March of the Penguins,' it's ultimately not nearly as emotionally satisfying....."

Was that a joke comment?
March of the Penguins was false, over anthropomorphized crap. It can hardly be considered a "documentary" in any way. Planet Earth quietly and masterfully presents the natural world. The sequence with the Lions attacking the Elephant is distressing to watch. There is nothing more emotionally effecting for me than seeing events like that. This series was full of those moments. Saying they don't have "emotional satisfaction" betrays a lack of humanity.

[padanx]

Originally Posted by divian

I would not pay a lot of attention in the content part of the reviews on High Defintion web sites.
I usually concentrate in the AQ and PQ section.

Don't even know if I'd go that far, given the PQ judgment passed on 'The Game' earlier this week.

[bezzer69]

I watched this HD last night and it is absolutely breathtaking this is easily the best quality hd on the market so far the detail is astonishing, it really does look like looking through a window, In comparison to the uk dvd version this hd is in a league of its own.

[Peter Galbavy]

I got home after a particularly hard - for me anyhow - cycle home to find the envelope waiting for me. Woohoo I said, and I am happy to say it again. Woohoo!

As someone who has seen the SD broadcasts and relatively low bitrate 720p HD recordings over and over again I am still up for more. Quick change into home clothing, feed the poor starving (and quite fat) cat and plonk down on the sofa. I only managed to watch the first episode, Pole to Pole, last night before succumbing to thirst and hunger but it is everything I expected from it and more. The sound is almost exactly as broadcast over satellite (and the BBC terrestrial test) in the UK, but the 448k may be a slightly higher bitrate and sounded better; or was that just me turning it up a few more notches ?

In those places where HD content was shot, which was about 90% of episode 1, the PQ was stunning. The remaining footage fits in perfectly - including those scenes where some obvious digital zoom was used to highlight specific subjects - you almost don't notice the variations unless you are looking for them.

This is not wizz-bang stuff, unless like me you consider real life to be dramatic and suprising. The shots of the Great Whites taking the seals are still a little shocking and awe inspiring. The aeriel parnoramas of huge migrating herds and the hunt scenes are as fresh as the first time I saw them.

There are, as with anything, some negatives. Zero extras - where are the PE Diaries, the three special "Planet Earth: The Future" espisodes, the "music only" soundtrack ?

Oddly, on the last point, my XE1 shows "Effects Audio: LPCM" - wonder if the narration is removable ? I don't see this on any other HD discs I have... Can't see how to change it though.

[Tejstar]

Originally Posted by HomeTheatreFreak

In the end Planet Earth does what it set out to do and that is a huge huge understatement. Again this and The Blue Planet are without a single doubt the 2 best nature documentaries ever put on film and nothing else out there is even in the same ballpark.

I agree, I wonder how long it will be before we see The Blue Planet on HD...

[LizardMan101]

Also, with all due respect, perhaps Mr. Bracke's rear speakers are on their last breath. My rear speakers were active throughout each episode: animal calls, footsteps, wind, beating wings, blowing snow, waves, rain, thunder, rocks tumbling, insects chirpping, foliage rustling, even that unnatural yet oh-so-comforting rumble in the outer space shots.

[LizardMan101]

Originally Posted by joeymac

The sequence with the Lions attacking the Elephant is distressing to watch. There is nothing more emotionally effecting for me than seeing events like that. This series was full of those moments. Saying they don't have "emotional satisfaction" betrays a lack of humanity.

Or how about the sequence in "From Pole to Pole" with the baby elephant who became disoriented in the dust storm and began walking away from the rest of the elephant group and the water? The camera pulls back from a close-up of the baby and we see what is so far my favorite image from the series with the barren landscape that stretches to the horizon and is dotted with dust tornadoes. Add Fenton's beautiful score on top of that.

If that wasn't an emotional sequence to Mr. Bracke, he's either a rock that has somehow figured out how to write reviews despite a lack of limbs, or he was very sleepy throughout the entire program.