Galapagos

This DVD will transport you to the wonders of the Galapagos. The documentary provides viewers with in depth commentary and footage that will certainly bring the destination closer to you. Image quality and footage are superbly filmed, and Tilda Swinton's soothing voice & pitch set the right tone for an amazing destination.Wildlife footage has been captured in an unbelievable way; not only from a visually entertaining point of view, but also from a detailed point of view. Loved the scenes where giant tortoises are featured, marine iguanas feeding, blue-footed boobies displaying, albatrosses courting, and the only-tropical penguin on Earth fishing underwater. The volcanic eruption footage is also remarkable for its quality. For viewing purposes, the larger the screen the better.We went to the Galapagos in May 2006 for nine days and it was an unbelievable experience. We used Adventure Associates in the US, and also Ecuador's Metropolitan Touring. This dvd will remind us constantly of the powerful message the islands left upon us. We asked for "what is the best time to go", and we understand that tourism is managed year-round. We were advised that in the summer months, Easter, Xmas and New Year's, finding space can be challenging, but in months like April, May and early June, finding space is easier, and that wildlife is at its prime due to the transition months between one season and the other one. They were SO right! We saw so many incredible things both on land and underwater (weather was unbelievably perfect too!). We noticed larger vessels offered greater amenities, onboard options, and their level of Naturalists' environmental interpretation is excellent. We are making arrangements to go back again with friends in early June 2007, and will give them this dvd as a gift.Back to the dvd, the sound quality is perfect and the low price of $14.99 is very affordable. This is thus far the best comprehensive documentary we have seen about the Galapagos, and it will not be a disappointment. I have purchased other documentaries, and although they were good, this one remains our favorite. Another hard-to-find dvd is NG's "Galapagos, Land of Dragons", but was never released in dvd format, just vhs. You know what happens with vhs tapes after playing them twenty times. The dvd case has easy access to the dvd itself, and the different menus are easy to navigate through. The only con is that it brings just the audio program in English. It'd have been great to add Spanish and German.All science teachers and libraries should have it. You will not be disappointed with this dvd. Hope you can visit this extraordinary destination.

Some excellent photography, but too many scenes are reused in the series. Narration is good, but Sir Richard is just without equal. The reenactments about Darwin are overwrought. Worth buying if you get it at a good price.

Personal use and for educational use.

Friends, i rarely write movie and disc reviews on amazon. After witnessing this splendor, i was pulled, compelled, overwhelmed to write anything on this title! it deserves 20 Stars! BBC HD has done it again.As others have pointed out, if you watched  Planet Earth - The Complete BBC Series [Blu-ray ], GALAPAGOS take you to the next level! The narration, visual photography, the sound and the context of the entire idea is just mesmerizing.To show how much i was into this, i had just come back from a 16 hour shift (this week has been like this all 5 days) i came back and found this amongst other amazon goodies. I was looking forward to it but was not expecting what i saw. I played it in and there i was moved for the next 2 hours until my body and brain could not take it anymore. i had to sleep due to exhaustion! but rest assured i continued when i got back the next day. I had no idea how much beauty and life still exists on this planet despite us plundering the earth's resources.This title only can be appreciated fully on Bluray! i don't want to make this a DVD Format discussion but anyone watching this on a 92'' diagonal HD Projection screen can appreciate what this disc has to offer.I have other productions of nature like films also on Bluray but nothing compares to this title. If you love your theater setup and want to push the visual boundaries of any setup, get this disc! (possibly even  Planet Earth - The Complete BBC Series [Blu-ray ] as well!) i also got  Alaska: Spirit of the Wild (IMAX) [Blu-ray ] but will review it after a while.happy watching everyone!

Galapagos DVD is probably the best nature movie/documentary I have ever seen. Besides the fact that I am an Ecuadorian, and that I have visited the Galapagos, without been too bias I can say this work is a Masterpiece.On this three part documentary the viewer is shown things about the Galapagos that very few people in the world have had the chance to see. Most people don't know this, but as a tourist travelling to the Galapagos you are restricted to a small "people friendly" section of the Archipelago, although you might find it to be the most incredible experience of your life (as it was my case when I visited for the first time in 1999), you can only see the tip of the iceberg. This documentary shows you incredible footage of animals, and places, that unless you are a scientist working there for years you wouldn't have the chance to see.To make it short, I you want to visit the Galapagos see this DVD first, and if you only dream to go then fuel the imagination and buy the DVD...like I did.Only one bad thing, there are no Spanish or French subtitles... come on BBC not the whole world can understand English...

This is a three part documentary with the episodes lasting about 50 minutes, 150 minutes in total. The episodes are Born of Fire; Islands that Changed the World and Forces of Change. There are no extras.The voice over is provided in English read by English actress Tilda Swinton. Having a narrator who paces the script well and with apparent personal interest greatly enhances the enjoyment for viewers but that communication is sadly compromised here for much of the time. Tilda Swinton appears to be more concerned with her meticulous enunciation as a first priority with very little animation in the first two documentaries especially. The final documentary brings about a marked improvement with a more animated delivery, particularly when describing the underwater scenes. This is the only real evidence of the subject material apparently engaging her own interest. It is such a shame that she could not do this in the first two episodes.The films themselves seem to be HD quality throughout and can sustain close viewing distance indicative of that quality. The disc is copyrighted as 2006 vintage. The image quality is striking throughout and the underwater photography is an especial achievement.Each episode provides a detailed survey of the Galapagos environment and together the three episodes will give viewers a fairly ‘broad’ understanding and awareness of the history, geology, creation and eventual demise of the islands.During the documentaries we hear that there are 13 main islands situated in the Pacific Ocean some 600 miles off the coast of South America and positioned on the equator. There are also some 100 outcrops that are too small to be called islands. Together they provide a wide range of habitats from almost bare volcanic lava to lush forested islands. The youngest is about 30,000 years and has a bare volcanic terrain while middle aged islands of about 1,00,000 years have plenty of vegetation. Forests take longer to form. All the islands have been formed over a volcanic ‘hot spot’ and six are still active. They all travel south-east at a few centimetres annually and eventually die by sinking below the waves.Sonar tracking has revealed that all the islands are a chain of volcanoes that have coalesced into a vast plinth which has an enormous effect on the surrounding oceanic currents such as the cool Cromwell and Humboldt currents. These create an upwelling of plankton and other nutrients which in turn have created a wealth of marine life.The first episode introduces and illustrates much of the information summarised two paragraphs above. The paragraph immediately above is largely dealt with in the final episode.The second episode covers the discovery of the islands and their value to pirates and whalers amongst others. The most significant visitor was Charles Darwin who visited in 1835 as part of the second exploratory journey of HMS Beagle (1831-36). His observations led him to consider evolution and these ideas were put forward in his ground-breaking Origins of Species published in 1859.The final episode concludes by describing the damaging effect of human activity upon these islands. Currently the local population has greatly expanded from 2,000 to 30,000 and this is largely to service the tourist trade which numbers some 100,000 visitors annually. In addition there are the damaging effects of introduced non-native plants and animals. Of these the most damaging has been the feral goats that have destroyed so much vegetation that the indigenous animals have nothing to eat and are dying of starvation. There is an active policy of goat extermination on the worst two affected islands which has had a regenerative effect. Clearly there is still much to be considered and done to preserve these islands for the future and protect them from the damaging effects of human activity.This is a wonderfully filmed and informative trio of films and the quality of the photography alone will make this an invaluable set for enthusiasts. The script is informative but contains a fair amount of repetition. The self-aware nature of the narrator and the studied pacing of the delivery is the weakest part of the production. Nevertheless there is still a great deal to enjoy and value and the discs can be recommended despite the disappointing narrative style.

Photography is very good but the narrative is dire. It is quite informative but the sloooow pace/delivery has no life in it, not helped by the background music which is more suited to a meditation exercise. All the islands and their species, on land and offshore are covered, with a fair bit of history and geology thrown in for good measure. The last of the 4 sections deals with the modern challenges to the Galapogas of population explosion, introduced species, habitat depredation and sea animal exploitation. Maybe worth watching once, but no more than that.

As I am not likely to visit this region, this is the next best thing! I particularly enjoyed the scenery, and it was very interesting to hear about the history of the islands, and the animals themselves! I enjoyed the feature on "Lonesome George"- pity they couldn't find a female for him, and pity he is now dead. However, surely this shows the frail state of the animal population in that region, and it is very important to preserve the Galapagos Islands.If I was being harsh, Tilda Swanton's voice can be a little bit hypnotic at times. This did not distract from an extremely good documentary as far I was concerned! The subtitles were very helpful.

A fascinating viewing of some of the most unusual creatures in the world,many of which are found nowhere else on earth. The high quality filming shows many of the islands spectacular volcanoes and the formation of the islands over the centuries. The landscapes are positively dangerous in many parts and it is a miracle that some of the species have survived the constant upheavals and battles against the elements. A most informative and educational film which I would recommend.

Every aspect of the documentary is first class. The history of the Galapagos, and how Darwin came to his conclusions based on his observations are fascinating. The amazing photography, Tilda Swinton's narration and highly evocative music by Paul Leonard-Morgan makes this BBC DVD a joy to watch.