IMAX - The Greatest Places (1998)

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IMAX - The Greatest Places (1998)

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The Greatest Places begins by noting that Earth is "the most diverse planet in the solar system," and impressive computer-generated graphics depict the very early history of the planet, showing vividly how geological events formed the continents. Particular sites around the world (the "greatest places" of the title) are then visited, and some dazzling cinematography displays the exotic locations spectacularly. A trip into the jungles of Madagascar demonstrates how the island, isolated as it was for 40 million years, developed unique wildlife, including many species of lemurs. High atop the Tibetan plateau, nomads are seen herding yaks and Buddhist pilgrims are filmed against the stunning peaks of the Himalayas. A "holy lake" in Tibet dissolves into a shot of the mighty Amazon River, and the ecosystem of the South American jungle is explored. And the world's largest island, Greenland, is scanned by cameras that linger on the sheer enormity of glaciers as well as on the native peoples who manage to live at extreme low temperatures. Near the end of the film the narrator notes that "life is a reflection of the landscape." And the breathtaking film shot in these remote but magnificent locales does demonstrate beautifully the awesome diversity of both landscape and life on Earth.

Камера покажет Вам гораздо больше, чем может увидеть турист. Вы удивитесь роскоши дворцов, соприкоснетесь с древними тайнами, восхититесь творениями природы. Нет на земле такого места, куда нельзя добраться на Вашем ковре-самолете. Вас ждут фантастические виды, неожиданные ракурсы, незабываемое путешествие и подлинные Чудеса - величайшие создания цивилизации. Когда страсть зодчего соединяется с тягой к прекрасному, рождается чудо - удивительное сооружение, над которым не властно время.

After a brief review of how Pangaea became the separate continents we know today, we drop by one of the interesting "exiles" of Pangaea's slow, steady disbursement of land masses, the island of Madagascar. This fascinatingly quarantined island experienced 40 million years of evolution with no outside interference, and so is home to a really intriguing assemblage of all sorts of unique life forms. The island hosts the most species of the Baobab, the "upside down tree" which appears to have its roots in the sky. These incredible trees can live for more than a thousand years. The island is also home to two thirds of all chameleon species. But perhaps the most striking life form inhabiting the island are the amazing variety of lemurs, and The Greatest Places has ample footage of these furry little critters—distantly related to monkeys—as they ply their trade in and among the island's tree canopy.

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IMAX - The Greatest Places (1998)

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From Madagascar we take off to Tibet and the Himalayas. The plateau leading up to the mountains is itself higher than the highest peak in America's Rocky chain. This sequence focuses as much on the native peoples as it does on the topography and expansive vistas, and as such we get a nice overview of how Tibetan Buddhists see a sacred connection between people and nature. Some of their interesting customs include writing prayers on flags which are hoisted into the sky to wave to the heavens themselves, as well as writing prayers which they place in little prayer wheels that they keep revolving by hand in a sort of meditative analog to praying the Rosary. This sequence has some of The Greatest Places' most evocative music, with long drone tones from the famous "throat singers" of Tibet, as well as squawking horns and pounding drums.

Next we visit The Amazon, the raging river which crosses more than two-thirds of the South American continent. Despite the innate power of this immense body of water, this is really one of the more peaceful segments of The Greatest Places, with some calm and calming tracking shots following various boaters down various expanses of the river. The Amazon Basin's daily weather cycle, which is almost Groundhog Day-esque in its predictability, is shown here in some great footage, and the nearly daily occurrences of thunderstorms gives the soundtrack a very impressive moment or two of LFE in this segment. A brief bridging sequence of Iguazu Falls leads to our next destination.

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From the rain forests of the Amazon to one of the driest places on earth highlights the variety which is part and parcel of The Greatest Places. The Namib Desert is an 80 million year old expanse of sand which includes dunes over one thousand feet tall. Despite its aridness, the Namib supports the greatest variety of life of any desert, and several interesting species are caught in their native habitats, including beetles which collect moisture on their sticky backs in order to survive, and adders which store water between their scales. One of the fascinating things shown in some very pretty footage is how the Namib is one of five west coast deserts which stretch to a cold sea, promoting the interaction of climates and elements to produce a lot of fog. While the fog is often omnipresent, it never falls as rain, and indeed more often than not simply obscures visibility, leading to a number of shipwrecks and the iconic appellation The Skeleton Coast.

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The stifling heat of the Namib gives way to the frigid climes of Greenland and the Arctic Circle, the largest island in the world and, according to The Greatest Places, the world's oldest landscape which has now sunk below sea level. We get some very pretty footage of icebergs, mountains of frozen water which are five times as massive underwater as they are above. A nicely evocative sequence shows a brave shaman of sorts, Greenland's native story teller, The Drum Dancer, out pounding rhythms in weather that frequently dips to 40 below zero. This sequence also offers some lovely and hauntingly beautiful, ghostly infused underscore.

Our final stop on this 40 minute tour around the world is Botswana in Southern Africa, home to the Okavango Delta, a place which has lured many documentary filmmakers through the years. The Okavango River Delta is Africa's greatest oasis, an island of life which flows from the Okavangan River, creating the largest inland river deltas in the world. Aerial shots show us the amazing maze of land and water, water that never flows to the sea, but instead spreads across the Kalahari Desert. This sequence has some of the most incredible fine detail in the entire documentary, with the canvassy texture of elephants completely noticeable.

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IMAX - The Greatest Places (1998)

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The Greatest Places is one of the more spectacularly visual outings from McGillivray Freeman, certainly a very high compliment indeed, especially if you've seen any of their other pieces. While Director Mal Wolfe does a brilliant job of crafting a wonderful entertainment, aided by the gorgeous cinematography of DP Chuck Davis, and the very inviting music score of Christopher James Thomas, there will be those who will have at least one major complaint about this brilliant piece of visual storytelling: it's quite simply way too short. If Phineas Fogg took 80 days to wend his way around the world, certainly 80 minutes wouldn't have been too long to visit The Greatest Places.

Jeffrey Kauffman, blu-ray.com