This documentary could be summarised in 5 minutes without cutting corners. In short, they found little and didn't use a structured approach to their research. They had a town map showing (since) buried roads that would have helped them zone in on their objective. They chose to ignore this.
However, the real failure in this documentary is that the documentary obsesses over the main archaeologist, Pepi Papakosta. Usually, a documentary (such as an Attenborough) would focus on good narration, learning about the topic at hand, and beautiful scenes. In this documentary, we are told repeatedly about Pepi and her persistence and her team and her dig and her finds and her ... and her ... and her. I kept on forgetting what the documentary was about because there was such a focus on Pepi. They also talked a lot about water pumps.
Now if you're a fan of Pepi Papakosta, this will be a fascinating documentary as Pepi knows her Greek architecture and pottery. We find out that Pepi has an interesting hat and interesting shoes. Beyond that, there's a bit about Alexander the Great, although, you'd probably be better off watching Oliver Stone's (loosely based on history) film about Alexander if you wanted to learn anything.
Why is there such a focus on the archaeologist? It's a serious question.
Normally, such mediocre documentaries come from the History Channel. National Geographic documentaries aren't what they used to be. Save your time and give this a miss.
However, the real failure in this documentary is that the documentary obsesses over the main archaeologist, Pepi Papakosta. Usually, a documentary (such as an Attenborough) would focus on good narration, learning about the topic at hand, and beautiful scenes. In this documentary, we are told repeatedly about Pepi and her persistence and her team and her dig and her finds and her ... and her ... and her. I kept on forgetting what the documentary was about because there was such a focus on Pepi. They also talked a lot about water pumps.
Now if you're a fan of Pepi Papakosta, this will be a fascinating documentary as Pepi knows her Greek architecture and pottery. We find out that Pepi has an interesting hat and interesting shoes. Beyond that, there's a bit about Alexander the Great, although, you'd probably be better off watching Oliver Stone's (loosely based on history) film about Alexander if you wanted to learn anything.
Why is there such a focus on the archaeologist? It's a serious question.
Normally, such mediocre documentaries come from the History Channel. National Geographic documentaries aren't what they used to be. Save your time and give this a miss.