NOVA - Life's Greatest Miracle

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DVD Cover Information

Actor: Jay O. Sanders, Liev Schreiber, Neil Ross, Stacy Keach, Will Lyman
Cinematographer: D.J. Roller
Producer: D.J. Roller
Cinematographer: Sam Henriques
Producer: John Angier
Writer: Mark Davis
Writer: Mark Hobson
DVD: Region Code 1
Audio: English (Original Language)
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, NTSC
Picture Format: 1.85:1
Running Time: 60 minutes
DVD Release Date: 2002-07-16
Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Studio: PBS Home Video

Movie Reviews of NOVA - Life's Greatest Miracle

Movie Review: An incredible journey on video
Summary: 3 Stars

"Life's Greatest Miracle" is a one-hour PBS program on how the human life starts in the womb. Produced circa 2001, it was an updated edition of the ~1983 ground-breaking "The Miracle of Life," also aired in the U.S. under the auspice of the Nova series.

I've watched both DVDs and I'll compare the two. If you are debating which version to watch, I say it depends on your interest: if you want to see more microscopy photography, get the original "The Miracle of Life." If you want a better viewing experience, get this one, "Life's Greatest Miracle." I give both DVDs 3 stars.

While not as ground-breaking as the original, "Life's Greatest Miracle" sports higher-definition, more colorful microscopic video images, which are simply amazing. Of course, everyone who's never seen a large number of sperm swimming around will simply be mesmerized. I couldn't tell whether the all the video footage of the wiggling sperm was the same as in the original edition, but it seemed to me that here either the sperm were stained more (with chemicals so they stand out against the background, as is done all the time in biology), or the producers somehow increased the contrast. To the viewer, the action (no pun intended!) is more captivating. (In the old edition, images are coarser and less colorful.)

The biggest difference between this edition and the original program is the emphasis of the content. The original edition emphasizes the science part, and there are long sequences of cells dividing and inside looks of the vagina and uterus. This edition focuses on the entire process more, and speeds up and cuts out some of the long microscopic video scenes from the original edition. The story in this edition is weaved better and seems less like a science class as "The Miracle of Life."

Also, the present edition features updated information as well as some additional video (but not much). Also, there's more animation to help the viewer understand. The original program tends to get boring and confusing, but things are much more easily understood in this updated volume.

But I only give "Life's Greatest Miracle" 3 stars because, like the first one, it just doesn't have enough interesting stuff. Actual microscopic footage occupies perhaps just 1/3 of the total running time, and there's this unnecessary story of a pregnant couple. What's more, I couldn't tell whether some of the "inside the womb" scenes were microscopic photography or computer-rendered graphics, and this troubles me. I prefer "real" images, even if it means staining cells in order to make them look more vivid. Computer-generated stuff is fake, and it's worst when someone tries to pass it off as real.

In short, "Life's Greatest Miracle" is an informative and enjoyable program to watch -- and you are treated to the commercials that precede PBS's Nova airing! (Luckily you can forward-skip them.) Whether you are expecting or not, I recommend this, so everyone can appreciate human life more.

If you want a more science-oriented view with more microscopic footage, get the original "The Miracle of Life." The presentation is drier but you get to see more images that demonstrate how miraculous life is.

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Summary of NOVA - Life's Greatest Miracle

NOVA collaborates with Swedish scientific photographer Lennart Nilsson to use breathtaking new footage and state-of-the-art computer animation to show - in more complete detail than ever before - the making of a human life. Among the stunning sequences shot by Nilsson is the incredible voyage of the sperm toward the egg. Other events captured in Life?s Greatest Miracle include the journey of the fertilized ovum down the fallopian tube, the hatching of the embryo from its confining shell on day six, and the miraculous transformation of an embryo from a ball of cells into three layers from which all the body?s organs will emerge.

Nova delivers a bundle of gestational joy with "Life's Greatest Miracle," a magical, humbling look at the complex mechanics of baby making. Similar in content to the 1983 Nova classic "The Miracle of Life," this artfully designed show features the skilled microphotography of Lennart Nilsson and the jocular voice of narrator John Lithgow. But this time the emphasis is on how an egg, a sperm, and their talented supporting cast (hormones, enzymes, and so on) build a human body, complete with 100 trillion cells. The one-hour show follows an expectant couple whose musings about their unborn child nicely punctuate the stunning inner uterine and embryo film work. Exquisite computer animation illustrates hard-to-show processes, including meiosis (where genes are shuffled and chosen for sex cells). Best of all, Julia Cort's engaging script offers just the right blend of fact, humor, suspense, and tact to please viewers from high school age on up. --Liane Thomas

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