{"id":20317,"date":"2020-04-10T15:49:32","date_gmt":"2020-04-10T22:49:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cinemastance.com\/?p=20317"},"modified":"2020-04-10T15:49:32","modified_gmt":"2020-04-10T22:49:32","slug":"elephant-and-dolphin-reef-deliver-beautiful-imagery","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/?p=20317","title":{"rendered":"ELEPHANT and DOLPHIN REEF Deliver Beautiful Imagery"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

These two pictures are currently available to stream on Disney+<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Disney has a lengthy history producing non-fiction films\nchronicling the lives of various animal species. Just over a decade ago, they founded\nDisneynature, a specific branch made to develop these documentary projects. The\ndistributor had planned on theatrical releases for the two features prior to\nthe coronavirus outbreak but have now made them available to stream on Disney+.\nThe first title is largely set in the dry and unforgiving Kalahari Desert,\nwhile the second takes viewers under the water near the Polynesian Islands in\nthe Pacific. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Elephant <\/em>follows a herd on an arduous trek over many\nmonths across the sand and salt plains of the Kalahari. This is all for the\nspecies\u2019 annual migration to find water and nourishment. The central story\nfocuses on elderly leader Gaia, her younger sister Shani, and Shani\u2019s\none-year-old infant pachyderm, Jomo, a very cute and playful youngster who has\nnever made the journey before. Gaia heads the amazing journey, leading the\ngroup based solely on her memory of the pathway. Between moments of playfulness,\nthe picture captures the many dangers as they attempt to reach their\ndestination. Besides fighting dehydration, they must also pass through areas\nfilled with predators like lions and hyenas. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The footage has been cut together and narrated (in this case\nby Meghan Markle) to anthropomorphize the elephants. Obviously, relatable\nbehaviors and similarities exist between us and these animals, but the script\ndoes get hokey at times, forcing the voice-over artist to act out and present\nhuman rationalization for their choices. To be fair, the material is delivered\nas well as it can be and there are some interesting facts about the species\ninterjected, but the \u201cstory\u201d as presented is definitely geared towards young\nviewers. The message being repeatedly delivered is that Jomo should always\nlisten to and follow his mother\u2019s rules in order to stay safe. While it\u2019s certainly\ntrue and the sentiment may please parents, the movie is less-than-subtle about\ndelivering its message.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Thankfully, it\u2019s gorgeous to behold. The filmmakers capture\namazing close-up footage of the elephants interacting, so much so that you can\nsee and practically feel every wrinkle on their skin. There are stunning vistas\nas well, with incredible shots of the desert and salt plains that consistently\namaze. Additionally, the movie includes remarkable overhead drone photography\nof the herd, with some standout images of the immense Victoria Falls. Even if\nthe narration is sometimes eye-rolling, the footage itself is first-rate. And\nfor parents worried about the fates of the animals and the potential for\nserious harm, the filmmakers avoid showing the more chaotic and brutal side of\nnature. The only passing in the movie that occurs is presently gently, and\ncomes as a result of natural causes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Even though the setting is very different, Dolphin Reef<\/em>\nis very much the same kind of picture in terms of style and approach. In this\ncase, narrator Natalie Portman introduces us to Echo, a three-year-old\nBottlenose Dolphin and his mother, Kumu. Kumu\u2019s main concern appears to be\nteaching Echo how to catch food and take care of himself. As in the previous\nfeature, Echo occasionally disobeys his parent, getting himself into trouble.\nThe movie also introduces a humpback whale and her calf (who undergo a similar\nseries of threats), and presents comic relief with a mantis shrimp given the\npersonality of an obsessive compulsive neat-freak. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once again, the makers avoid presenting any truly violent\nscenes or harm that might befall the lead characters. It also presents some curious\nbits of trivia (while this wasn\u2019t focused upon or intended, this reviewer was\nstruck by how many aquatic species are described as more than happy to eat\ntheir own kind). And once again, the movie looks fantastic, from the brightly\ncolored fish to the beautiful coral reefs, which are even reflected in shots\npointed upwards towards the surface of the water. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Yes, the narration in both of these features is corny.\nHowever, it\u2019s not the fault of either performer, but rather the script. For\nmany adults, the big takeaway will be that Disneynature wants kids to always conform\nto the orders of their mom (and that there are a whole lot of cannibals living\nunder the sea). Still, for nature buffs and families both of the films are\nworthy and provide some breathtaking scenery. And it\u2019s admirable that the films\nalso may excite youngsters and get them interested in the preservation of\npachyderms and the underwater ecosystem. In the end, Elephant<\/em> and Dolphin\nReef<\/em> aren\u2019t perfect, but they\u2019ll certainly entertain and relax families\nlooking for something to watch together during this unusual time.  <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

These two pictures are currently available to stream on Disney+ Disney has a lengthy history producing non-fiction films chronicling the lives of various animal species. Just over a decade ago, they founded Disneynature, a specific branch made to develop these documentary projects. The distributor had planned on theatrical releases for the two features prior to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":20319,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[198,5922,5936,5993,6034,6037,6804,6805,7283,9487,11673],"class_list":["post-20317","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-movie-reviews","tag-198","tag-disney","tag-disneynature","tag-documentary","tag-dolphin-reef","tag-dolphins","tag-elephant","tag-elephants","tag-family","tag-humpback-whale","tag-kids"],"blocksy_meta":{"styles_descriptor":{"styles":{"desktop":"","tablet":"","mobile":""},"google_fonts":[],"version":8}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20317","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=20317"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20317\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=20317"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=20317"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cinemastance.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=20317"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}