Chased by Dinosaurs
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Movie Reviews of Chased by Dinosaurs
Movie Review: NIGEL MARVEN + TIME MACHINE + DINOSAURS = INCREDIBLE EDUCATIONAL FUN!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
WHAT IT IS:
This is the most compelling and satisfying program about dinosaurs ever!
Where "Walking With Dinosaurs" and "Prehistoric Beasts" were awesomely realistic educational tools, "Chased by Dinosaurs" adds the one missing element -- FUN - FUN - FUN!!
HOW SO?
The other "Walking With" programs are empirical, educational tools that have no equal, but young children, who traditionally are the biggest dinosaur enthusiasts, find them a bit difficult to stay focused on. This time travel format hosted by Nigel Marven is especially valuable for children, though I found it for myself to be the most compelling of the entire series.
The first episode [28 minutes] - "THE GIANT CLAW" serves notice that man and dinosaur will be sharing the same world and even the same frames on film. In the first 3 minutes, Nigel Marven is almost eaten several times in what look to be real man-meets-dinosaur encounters. It's just the beginning!
Episode 2 [28 minutes] - "LAND OF THE GIANTS" introduces us to the recently discovered, largest dinosaurs [so far]. In the world of dinosaurs, bigger is always more interesting. The Argentinasaurus weighs in at 92 tons and we see Nigel actually put the scales under the dinosaur, as a herd of Argentinasauruses passes by. You don't have to be a child to get excited over this!
The last part, "Chased By Sea Monsters", due to its scope, is broken into 3 segments [28 minutes each]. Basically, using a time machine [a device that we don't see], Nigel Marven and his brave crew check out the 7 most dangerous oceans of all time. These are shown in order of ascending danger, the 7th most dangerous ocean shown first and the most dangerous shown last. The timeline goes back and forth, but it allows a very effective building of tension as each ocean is filled with exotic and dangerous menaces that are more menacing with each new ocean.
"THE SCIENCE OF GIANTS" DOCUMENTARY:
This 50-minute special feature is about as good as it gets when it comes to dinosaur documentaries. "Science of Giants" examines a relatively new and previously unproven theory regarding the herding tendencies of the largest carnivores, previously assumed to be solitary creatures. We witness the efforts of paleontologist Philip Currie in his coordinated efforts to prove that "megacarnivores" actually hunted and lived in packs.
"Fact Files" are also included within the Special Features that provide quick, basic info about the dinosaurs that are included in the series.
This is very interesting stuff.
BOTTOM LINE:
It doesn't get any better than this! Throughout the five-part, time machine sequences we have Nigel Marven in the same frames as the dinosaurs and every moment is spent entertainingly, usefully, and educationally.
FOR FURTHER VIEWING:
"Walking With Dinosaurs" and "Walking With Prehistoric Beasts" are the most educationally significant videos of their kind. However, "Prehistoric Beasts" deals primarily with huge mammals and human ancestors making it inherently interesting to me. The lives of huge mammals are also followed, many of which are as large as dinosaurs.
There is also "Allosaurus-A Walking With Dinosaurs Special", based on a recent find. An extrapolation of "Big Al's" life and death is the focus of this treat, along with a documentary which explains how that extrapolation was made. For these, Kenneth Branagh is the narrator and he is very well-suited for the role.
Movie Review: "Chased by Dinosaurs"!
Summary: 5 Stars
Chased By Dinosaurs - A Walking with Dinosaurs Special, and Sea Monsters - A Walking with Dinosaurs Trilogy are the 4th and 5th "walking with" programs.
Starting with Chased by Dinosaurs, as others have stated this is a two part program, one being "Land of Giants", and the other "The Giant Claw". On this release, "Land of Giants" comes first, followed by "The Giant Claw", but they were aired in the opposite order on television, and "The Giant Claw is actually the first program.
That being said, this is one awesome documentary! It begins with Nigel already back in time (how he managed to get there is left up to the viewers imagination) and from there he carries out whatever particular challenge he's set for himself.
Sea Monsters is the same deal, only this time he's dealing with... Sea Monsters. He travels through the 7 deadliest oceans of all time, starting from the bottom and working his way up. Again, this has the same high production standards and is highly entertaining.
Some have complained about the fact that they've introduced "talking heads" into the "walking with" series and that it was a mistake. I completely disagree, I was a bit skeptical at first and didn't know how it would fare, but it turned out perfectly. Nigel Marven was the perfect naturalist for this, cause' he is a great actor. You completely believe that he is looking at dinosaurs and other prehistoric creatures. This is also achieved by the top-notch effects. The CGI models are fantastic and look just as good as "Walking with Dinosaurs". (if not slightly better)
His interactions with these animals are perfect, and done very realistically I might add. I was always tempted to watch those movies for the dinosaur-human interaction but could never stand the ridiculous violence. Nigel still has some close scrapes though, but if the dinosaurs have their natural prey or Nigel is too hard to get to they won't bother.
Another complaint some have had is that there is too much Nigel and not enough dinosaurs. That is completely false; it is jam-packed with dinosaurs and all kinds of other prehistoric creatures. Hardly a minute goes by without some prehistoric animals. And it's like a nature program; they still have to show him tracking the creatures a little bit.
So, if you are considering picking this one up for whatever reason, then definitely do so. Another great addition to the "walking with" collection, highly recommended!
Movie Review: Dinosaur Fun Fest!!!
Summary: 5 Stars
When I first saw this DVD at the store, I knew it was going to be a blast. When I watched it, I was blown away! The special effects were some of the best that I have ever seen! Of course, this was made by the same people who made Walking With Dinosaurs, so I am not surprised. As a true dinosaur fan, I like to see many different species of dinosaurs brought to life on screen. This is exactly what I had hoped for. They used all sorts of different species, some of them I have not even heard of!!! They used Giganotosaurus, a carnosaur that is larger than Tyrannosaurus, Argentinosaurus, the only land animal that comes close in size to the blue whale, Tarbosaurus, a large predatory dinosaur that is very closely related to the Tyrannosaurus Rex, and many,many,many more prehistoric creatures that will both amaze, and frighten! Best of all, they used a guy named Nigel Marven to show us the dinosaurs in a Crocodile Hunter-like fashion. Not only that, but when Nigel walks up close to the prehistoric fauna, he gives us a very good idea of scale. I just wanted to let you know something before I wrap things up. The producers of the "Walking With..." series just released a "sequal" to this fun fest. I'm sure a lot of you have heard of Prehistoric Park. Prehistoric Park is basically the same formula, except this time, Nigel (yes he returns in this series) gets to meet our old friend the Tyrannosaurus Rex. And best of all, there are still all new prehistoric creatures featured in this series. However, this kind of formula is still new to television, so make sure you watch Chased by Dinosaurs first, before you see Prehistoric Park. Chased by Dinosaurs keeps it simple, but Prehistoric Park takes this new genre a step further. Overall, if you are a dinosaur fan, then you most certainly will not be disappointed. Oh and by the way, keep your eyes peeled for Prehistoric Park. If I liked that show so much, I'm sure any other dino-fan would too. Thanks for reading!!!Movie Review: Nigel Marven takes on Prehistoric Life
Summary: 5 Stars
"Walking with Dinosaurs" was a technical marvel, and the BBC keeps spitting them out. This latest offering, "Chased by Dinosaurs", is no exception. This time, the narrator takes a back seat to our host, Nigel Marven. The DVD is split into five episodes, each taking on a different time in history. In "The Giant Claw", Nigel tries to track down the owner of a huge claw in Cretaceous Mongolia, and what he finds is nothing like what he expected. "Land of Giants" finds our host in Cretaceous Argentina, where he witnesses a true clash of titans. And in the three part "Sea Monsters", Nigel takes to the water to observe the worst the prehistoric oceans had to offer.
Each episode is well written and well done, and as one reviewer mentions, the animation has truely improved since "Walking with Dinosaurs". Perhaps the best of the offerings is "Sea Monsters", where each episode ends with Nigel and crew facing a peril of some kind, and the viewer wondering, "What happens next?" As with the previous video releases, this is the original BBC airing, with no cuts.
Included with this DVD are trailers for "Walking with Dinosaurs", "Walking with Beasts", "Walking with Cavemen", and "Blue Planet". There are also fact files for each of the animals encountered in the series, as well as an extra program, "The Science of Giants", from the BBC series "Horizons". All in all, an must have for your "Walking with..." collection.
Movie Review: Better than WWD
Summary: 5 Stars
I thought this DVD would be a lame remake of WWD. I couldn't have been more wrong. Here are a few things I loved about it:
1. It went beyond T. Rex. While T. Rex and friends are great to see, this DVD introduces some new dinosaurs that are really phenomenal, from the largest land carnivore ever, Giganatosaurus, to the largest sea turtle ever, Archelon.
2. While I thought having a human might be annoying, it actually is great because it gives the viewer a good sense of the scale of the dinosaurs. It is amazing to see how small Marven is next to the sarcosuchus, or supercroc. It adds a new level of depth to visualizing dinosaurs.
3. Great CG. Even better than WWD. The interaction with Marven was a tough feat to accomplish, but it is done superbly. Also, I like the fact that the dinosaurs have more colors, as they probably would have in real life.
4. Marven's narrating isn't half bad. He may not be Attenborough, but I think he brings the right attitude to the film and makes it more believable.
The only major drawback is that, because of the human interaction, there may be less overall footage of dinosaurs. This is particularly true for the sea monsters section. However, because this is not merely a half-hour special, but rather 150 minutes, you definitely get your money's worth.