Am a big fan of David Attenborough, always have and always will be. He has contributed significantly to some of the best documentaries ever produced and he deserves to be known as a treasure. When it comes to nature documentaries he is my hero and is hard to beat.
The output of Attenborough has been extensive and consistent (in terms of the high quality, have seen nothing bad from him which is incredibly rare) and it is very difficult to pick a favourite among so many jewels. 'The Life of Birds' is still by any standards a masterpiece, in terms of documentaries about birds it's ground-breaking and it's a wonderful documentary in its own right. It has everything that makes so much of his work so wonderful and deserves everything great that has been said about it.
Dealing this time with the role of birds' beak and their dieting, "The Insatiable Appetite" is in no way a step-down from the wonderful previous two episodes.
First and foremost, "The Insatiable Appetite" is gorgeously filmed, done in a natural and intimate (a great way of connecting even more with the birds), way, never does it feel static. Its remarkably near-cinematic look makes one forget that it is a series. The editing flows smoothly and coherently and the scenery is gorgeous. Animation is also brought into the mix, not only does it hold up well it also is used sensibly, making an impact without being over-used and never jars.
Nothing to fault the music for, it is never overly grandiose while never being inappropriate or intrusive. The intrusiveness has been an issue with some documentaries seen recently, Attenborough's work not exempted, but it was not here.
Again, like the whole of 'The Life of Birds', "The Insatiable Appetite" does a wonderful job with entertaining, educational and transfixing. In terms of the facts there was a very good mix of the known ones and the unknown, written and presented tactfully. It is all well-researched and backed up, speculation and too much storytelling are traps easily fallen into but are are not issues here. Likewise with the different species themselves, most familiar to us with fewer rarely seen species compared to the first episode but the information presented was illuminating and saw them in a different light. There are memorable scenes like with the crow, the robin and the Galapagos finches, while the sword-bill, the crossbill and the hoatzin are particularly illuminating (plus the part about pollination).
Attenborough has always been instrumental as to why his output is so popular and why there are so many gems. He clearly knows his stuff and knows what to say and how to say it. He is very sincere and enthusiastic in an understated way, he's never preachy and the viewer is left riveted.
The birds themselves are great to watch and have a wide range of traits that makes them interesting and worth rooting for without coming over as too humanised, a good thing. For an episode of so much content and one that covers a lot, it doesn't feel over-stuffed and rushed, dangers for so much content in a short period of time.
Never does "The Insatiable Appetite" feel episodic or like a stringing along of segments, but instead there is a smooth flow, a consistent cohesiveness and some real emotion. The storytelling aspect doesn't too much into the trap of being over-speculative or compromising facts with not enough to back things up.
Yet another brilliant episode of one of the best documentaries on birds around. 10/10 Bethany Cox
The output of Attenborough has been extensive and consistent (in terms of the high quality, have seen nothing bad from him which is incredibly rare) and it is very difficult to pick a favourite among so many jewels. 'The Life of Birds' is still by any standards a masterpiece, in terms of documentaries about birds it's ground-breaking and it's a wonderful documentary in its own right. It has everything that makes so much of his work so wonderful and deserves everything great that has been said about it.
Dealing this time with the role of birds' beak and their dieting, "The Insatiable Appetite" is in no way a step-down from the wonderful previous two episodes.
First and foremost, "The Insatiable Appetite" is gorgeously filmed, done in a natural and intimate (a great way of connecting even more with the birds), way, never does it feel static. Its remarkably near-cinematic look makes one forget that it is a series. The editing flows smoothly and coherently and the scenery is gorgeous. Animation is also brought into the mix, not only does it hold up well it also is used sensibly, making an impact without being over-used and never jars.
Nothing to fault the music for, it is never overly grandiose while never being inappropriate or intrusive. The intrusiveness has been an issue with some documentaries seen recently, Attenborough's work not exempted, but it was not here.
Again, like the whole of 'The Life of Birds', "The Insatiable Appetite" does a wonderful job with entertaining, educational and transfixing. In terms of the facts there was a very good mix of the known ones and the unknown, written and presented tactfully. It is all well-researched and backed up, speculation and too much storytelling are traps easily fallen into but are are not issues here. Likewise with the different species themselves, most familiar to us with fewer rarely seen species compared to the first episode but the information presented was illuminating and saw them in a different light. There are memorable scenes like with the crow, the robin and the Galapagos finches, while the sword-bill, the crossbill and the hoatzin are particularly illuminating (plus the part about pollination).
Attenborough has always been instrumental as to why his output is so popular and why there are so many gems. He clearly knows his stuff and knows what to say and how to say it. He is very sincere and enthusiastic in an understated way, he's never preachy and the viewer is left riveted.
The birds themselves are great to watch and have a wide range of traits that makes them interesting and worth rooting for without coming over as too humanised, a good thing. For an episode of so much content and one that covers a lot, it doesn't feel over-stuffed and rushed, dangers for so much content in a short period of time.
Never does "The Insatiable Appetite" feel episodic or like a stringing along of segments, but instead there is a smooth flow, a consistent cohesiveness and some real emotion. The storytelling aspect doesn't too much into the trap of being over-speculative or compromising facts with not enough to back things up.
Yet another brilliant episode of one of the best documentaries on birds around. 10/10 Bethany Cox
