Home (I) (2009) User Reviews

Where are we going?

[GethinVanH · 8/10 · 3 September 2009]

Home is a documentary about Earth, humanity, nature, where we're going and what we've been. Shot in 54 countries with aerial footage it's a combination of all the navel-gazing movies we've seen lately like Planet Earth and Baraka. Like a guilty abusive adult, we're now taking a closer look at ourselves, what we've done to the planet and what we've to ourselves.

That's in large part what the first 3/4 of the movie is about. Showing different locations on Earth, the stunning gliding shots of our planet's more beautiful locations as well as the terrible damage we've caused. In that way it's much different than Baraka and Planet Earth, the two films I compared this to. This movie talks about humans, not just their achievements but the economic chaos we've wrought on each other.

The vast differences in class structure in the west from the east. The vast amounts of wealth owned by 2% of the population. Starvation, disease, war, are all covered in this documentary. It's not just about the nature but the capitalist system which has destroyed the planet and brought humanity to its knees.

Many of these changes have occurred in the past 50-100 years. Vast change which is increasing to the point where urbanization is epidemic all over the planet. The melting icecaps are also covered in very nice detail. The consequences are of course very grim. Some of this information I knew but it's good to be reminded how we live in the western world which is rapidly destroying the planet and taking all the innocent passengers along with us.

The movie was released on the internet, television and internet on the same day. It's on YouTube in its entirety, but I downloaded a high quality version from One Big Torrent which was very nice to watch.

Probably one of the best movies of 2009 and one of the best documentaries of the year as well. I highly recommend it.

Stunning, Scary and Optimistic

[planbeta · 9/10 · 5 June 2009]

Home delivers some of the most stunning photography of our planet I've ever seen. Really needs to be watched in HD to be be fully appreciated. Sweeping, glorious, rich shots of our planet, like we've never seen it before.

Even more powerful than that - the content of this documentary. The underlying message of Home really drilled home - no pun intended - how we're devouring this planet to hairs breadth of the point-of-no-return, after all "we've chosen survival over prospering". It is really quite scary watching the desperate facts this film delivers one-by-one.

At the same time, Home finishes in a upbeat manner. Home will definitely change the way I live my life - it's that powerful.

Go watch it.

Stunning

[simon-aberg-566-3912 · 9/10 · 27 October 2009]

I have never been so affected by a movie as this one. It makes me sad and angry. So much stupidity.

Even though I knew most of the facts in the movie before I saw it, it was truly an awakening for me. I have just realized that there is a realistic outcome that this system we live in wont last. Its no joke.

I think that the strengths of this movie is that it shows the whole picture and that everything is linked with everything else. Its HD picture is almost as good as "Planet Earth". Personally I thought the beginning was at bit slow, but It gets better...

I highly recommend this movie. It both very educational and the you will enjoy the HD picture/sound. Its also totally free so there is no reason not to watch it. Google for "home movie 2009" or if you want it in HD, download it using Vuze HD network

The movie for ETs to study our extinction, or our escape from it.

[Stskyshaker · 10/10 · 23 August 2009]

I was gripped from start to end, at first by its breathtaking aerial footage, then progressively also by its even more breathtaking dramatic plot, which we all are living. No wonder Yann Arthus-Bertrand spent 15 years preparing for the production of Home.

The narration is top-notch, arranged in perfect logic sense and fueled with precise and profound wording, reminds me of audio versions of Scientific American. I had thought it was a pity that David Attenborough wasn't a part of this amazing project, but Glenn Close, five-time Oscar nominee, indeed gave a mesmerizing voice performance, and along with a powerful score, deeply drew me into Home's elaborate illustrations and logical reasonings.

Some might think this documentary is so emotive that it's more of a propaganda despite how fact-based it is, but isn't a subject like this meant to be emotive? No this is not the kind of documentary that presents you with non-judged information for you to consider and debate- of course it is not, it's telling you the most overwhelming and alarming truth through worldwide facts and images in a careful logic flow, and yes with a great lot of passion built in! Vastly connected with the daily life of everyone and the fate of the human race, the movie left me steeped in thoughts. Like said many times in the movie, everything is linked, I find tons of images flashing in my head rapidly after watching Home, and more importantly, now I look at them linked together in a meaningful way.

Let me put it this way, if the entire human race were to be extinct on this planet, Home would be the recording that we should bury deep underground for extra-terrestrials to find out what happened and learn the lesson of our species- it is that good.

A wake up call.. for all of us

[ZeroVince · 10/10 · 5 June 2009]

This is my first review on IMDb ever, but I thought this documentary deserved it. The cinematography of this documentary is amazing, even the images of pollution of the environment that humans have caused look remarkably appealing to the eye. But this documentary is much more than a stream of beautiful images from across the world.

The message that the documentary contains is a strong one: unlike our nations, our ecosystem doesn't have any borders. As humans organized in nation states, we spend 12 times as much on weapons to defend ourselves from each other than we spend on aid for the poorest. The effects of the exploitation of our shared ecosystem will affect us all and will hit those who already face the toughest circumstances the hardest. The problems that our world faces, cannot be solved by any country alone. Too long have we focused on what separates us as citizens of specific countries, without realizing that we are all bound together as human beings. Without a rapidly growing global awareness of the situation we are facing, we will leave a much harsher environment for our children, in which natural resources on which we all depend will become increasingly scarce.

I am a student in my twenties; the state the world is in today, is how my generation will inherit it, before we will have had the chance to have any effect on this trend. Can this really be the inheritance of a generation that dedicated itself to peace, love and happiness? Maybe. Or maybe it's not too late just yet. You might still be a skeptic about the message the documentary tries to convey after reading my comments, but I promise you this: it will be much harder to be skeptic about that message after having watched Home.

Most Visually Stunning and Beautiful Movie You May Ever See

[cdin-org · 10/10 · 26 June 2009]

Perhaps it may seem that I overstate my appreciation for this movie. But, when you see the extraordinary compilation of beauty, work and effort that went into creating this work of ART, you may agree.

It focuses on the breathtaking gorgeousness of this singular planet we call Home.

Some may find this topic boring, repetitive, do-goody, tiresome... but trust me, this movie is BEYOND interesting and entertaining.

Some of the scenes are absolutely SURREAL in their beauty. There is one scene of people in a dump... how can such a scene hold so much impact and yet be so artfully gorgeous? I can't get that misty picture out of my mind, and it has compelled me to hope and work towards solutions. In a good way. Uplifted.

Question: How can a company (the one that sponsored the viewing of this movie) (Europa?) that thrives on promoting luxury and excess, care so much for the natural and inherent things of earth? It is true that such a company would cherish beauty and art... and the Earth is the most beauteous of all... perhaps when you've contributed to the downside, you grow and want to uplift, see things change for the good.

Whatever... this is one of the most beautiful documentaries ever made and EVERYONE should make the effort to SEE.

An extraordinary, unforgettable visual treat. For all time.

AFTER you see this movie, you MUST see FOOD INC. You MUST!

Beautiful, scary, hopeful.

[rgcustomer · 8/10 · 5 June 2009]

The film opens with a sequence on the history of life on earth, based on science. But it's somewhat important to understand this history, for points made later in the film.

The film shows ways in which our current activities are not sustainable, such as over-use of water, reliance on non-renewable oil and sources of fresh water, the use of agriculture primarily to feed animals to become meat, overpopulation, monoculture, shipping, etc.

It spotlights one case in history (Easter Island) to show what happens when a society doesn't react to the damage it is doing to its own environment.

I thank the filmmakers for drawing attention to my own country's (Canada's) dangerously wasteful use of land, water, and energy in the tar sands of Alberta and Saskatchewan, in the junkie's quest for harder-to-get oil.

Near the end, the film puts some facts on the screen (a few were unfortunately too small to be read). Some struck me as not particularly relevant to the film, such as how many people may be going hungry or thirsty. On the face of it, given the facts in the film, that's a good thing. To clarify, they needed to tie that to the fact that we could fix this problem if the rich used less, and if there were fewer rich.

It does end on a hopeful note, spotlighting some cases where people have taken small steps toward stopping our bad behaviours and living sustainably. It is hopeful, but I wish they had dwelled more on that, because we need concrete solutions that we can go to our mayors and councils with right now. Many of them have their head in the sand with petty politics, social issues, labour issues, the recession, and aren't thinking about when it really hits the fan a decade or two from now.

The images were mostly wide shots or aerial shots of landscapes, herds, cities, factory farms, etc. and were mostly quite beautiful. I also liked the music. Narration was a bit sparse, and in the English version I watched on Youtube (no subtitles), I think the narrator said "climactic" several times when she meant "climatic". But given the scale of what we're facing, maybe either word is OK.

The film was not shown in theatres in my area, nor was it shown on TV, except on the French channel (of course ... all the best stuff is on the French channels in my area) so I did appreciate the simultaneous Youtube release of this film. Given the free home viewing, a torrent would have been even more preferred, for portability and quality. My poor PC had trouble keeping up with the video AND the downloading at the same time.

In comparison with Earth (2007), I found this film to be more relevant to today. It isn't about the beauty of individual animals, but rather our entire home, and it clearly lays out that it's changing and that at a minimum we need to be preparing to handle that, and ideally trying to slow the change down. It's more honest.

In comparison with An Inconvenient Truth, I think it trades some of the information and style for a richer visual that lets the pictures do the talking. It's been a while since I've seen An Inconvenient Truth, but I think it covers much the same territory. I think Al's lecture approach was effective at drawing some people in and presenting the message clearly. But being a political figure maybe Home will attract some different viewers that may have been driven away by the earlier film just by his presence in it.

Scary truth!!

[asethi919 · 9/10 · 2 August 2009]

One of the most brilliant documentaries on one of the most important topics in todays world. The impact the movie has with its simplicity of delivering such a strong message is absolutely brilliant. The way they have shown the different sides of the coin and the vast dispartiy among the various parts of the world was an eye opener. The images presented were something never seen before and thee facts presented along with these were very interesting.

Lets hope they succeed in their goal of educating people about the alarming rate at which we are heading towards disaster. I sincerely hope that everyone sees this documentary and makes the little required effort from their side to dow what they can. I switched off my airconditioning after watching about 20 mins of the movie and didn't turn it on for the remainder of the movie. :D

Eye-opening and beautiful- but sadly not perfect

[dooglesdead · 9/10 · 22 March 2010]

First of all I am relieved that a movie on this subject has been produced with such a high budget. It's about time someone really tried to sum up what the human condition is, and the relationship between our condition and the condition of our planet.

The visuals for 'Home' are for the most part near perfect- pinpointing the beauties and miracles of this world, whilst also the disgraces and disasters with a total sensitivity and respect for all sides of the issue. The subjects covered are well chosen and diverse, and you really get perspective on how widespread and potentially devastating our manipulation of the natural world has become.

Unfortunately though, what slightly let this movie down for me was its 'matter of fact' approach, and a lack of attention to some important details. In some ways this film avoids a one-sided approach, with interesting stats showing how our attempts at alternative fuels have their own negative effects, but for the first section particularly it felt like some very dated notes on the history of the earth. We know some amazing things about the history of our planet but it's important to recognise that there is far more that we don't. I for one stand firmly on the side of science that can admit to not knowing. The most blatant error, as picked up by IMDb in the 'goofs' section, is the narration that the first towns appeared 600 years ago- how could you get that wrong!!? Apparently they meant to say 6000 years ago, but even this isn't fact as there is evidence of towns up to over 8000 years ago. On top of this it is continually stated that human beings have been around for 200'000 years, a theory that has been far from proved and therefore should be treated as such. I think that in a film that is trying to be scientifically credible, in this case vague/speculative language would possibly be more accurate. At least they managed to avoid a '2001: A Space Odyssey' style chimpanzee scene! Scientific stuff aside though, the most inexcusable error is that in the fairly small amount of on screen text there are numerous spelling mistakes. In most cases that doesn't bother me, but in a high budget film production it does, and it certainly doesn't help the reputation of the Eco-warriors (hippies come to mind!)

After watching this movie though, I'll admit that I had mostly forgotten the flaws because it really forces you to think about the issues. This is a good thing, and for the most part it is done with beauty, sensitivity and grace, which is why I've given it such a high rating. Watch this movie- the cinematography and well crafted narrative will open your eyes to the fragile state of our planet and cause you to appreciate your place in it more. Just don't be a sucker for the slightly anti-human philosophy.

Visually stunning but with questionable content

[eagle150 · 6/10 · 9 June 2009]

Well, I am not a native speaker, so please bear with me! I have seen this movie twice now and I really wanted to like it. I love the Planet Earth-Series and other nature/environment-related movies, but this one is a little...special. First of all, the visuals (e.g. photography) are stunning and very beautiful. Sadly, this is the only real good thing about this movie. What I consider bad about this movie? Well, there are several things:

The whole movie has a kind of instructive touch (as in preaching from above to dumb people) and it seems as if the filmmakers thought of their audience as stupid and therefore repeat everything over and over again - maybe they have to, but it still leaves a bit of a bad taste in my mouth. | The narration: Firstly, the (female) narrator is not bad, but in no way can she compare to David Attenborough of the Planet Earth-Series. The narration makes this movie seem a little alarmist, but not in a way that shocks you and makes you want to change things, but in a way that makes you think 'Yes, yes, I know! You said that already!'. Then, there is the vocabulary used. This is one of the things that disturbed me from the start (especially me as a German). Talking about herding cattle as keeping livestock "in concentration camp-like conditions" is not only outrageously insensitive, but also outright stupid. While saying things like this may be effective in creating attention, there are definitely better ways to do so. And why is half of what the narrator is saying numbers and statistics without any reference or comparison? Nobody will remember any of the numbers anyways, so please, at least give us the numbers with a context! | I personally don't like what I call the "spiritualistic approach" of this movie. By this I mean, that it is repeated over and over how everything in this world is connected and how humans are kind of a tumor on this earth that ruins it. While this may be true to some degree it still leaves a weird taste and makes this movie seem like creationist propaganda (which I am sure it is not, I'm just saying that this is not a very smart thing to do). | The movie basically only complains about the destruction of the earth by humans but offers no real solutions. The solutions it offers are ones that are already being used (e.g. using solar power) or are weirdly esoteric ones (e.g. everybody live in peace, the rest will work itself out). - This movie is very over-simplistic and one-sided. While none of the things being said are really wrong, most of them aren't really correct either. By using (debatable) arguments like this, the movie gets a bit of a manipulative touch. | While sponsoring this movie might be a good idea for the companies involved, this leaves one question: Why was every company allowed to put their name on this movie? Most of the companies produce in so-called third-world countries under worst circumstances for the workers and sell the products as luxury articles in industrialized countries and therefore actively take part in some of the activities that this movie wants to tell you about - so why the heck did the filmmakers take their money? | All in all, as a movie, this film isn't very entertaining. There is not really anything more than the visuals to keep you watching it, the narration is basically mostly throwing statistics at you and there is simply nothing new to it. | Another big problem with this movie is, that it doesn't seem to know what it wants to be. It isn't a documentary, but it isn't a normal picture either. It starts with stating that certain things are bad about the way humans treat the earth, but keeps adding stuff until you just don't care anymore. For example, the narrator says, that eating meat is bad for the environment. Then it adds, that coal mining is bad, goes on to say something else is bad and so on. Starting from 'Oh, yes, that's interesting, I didn't know that!' you will go to 'Okay, so everything is bad?' This IMHO also weakens the message of the movie a lot, the filmmakers should have just focused on fewer issues to tackle instead of being against environmental destruction, industrialism, globalization and the military. Don't get me wrong, it is very right to be against all of those things, but being against all of them at once is just hard to communicate in only one movie.

Also, please keep in mind that this movie is NOT a documentary in the usual sense of the word. There is nothing that is being documented, there is nothing new and there is nothing innovative in any way about this movie. While this is not necessarily bad, it changes the focus of the film from being a very boring documentary (which, as I have already said, it is not) to what it really is, a beautiful, but still only mildly entertaining movie.

So, in short: If you haven't seen the Planet Earth-Series, go see it now! If you have already seen it and watched all the other recent documentaries about environmental issues and want to see this one, go on and see it, but don't expect it to be more than average. Keep in mind what I have written above about this movie not being a documentary and you should be happy with it. About my rating: Considering 10 is the best and 1 is the worst possible rating on IMDb, I gave this movie 6 stars. 5 stars is average, I added two stars for the awesome visuals, none for the narration (above average voice-work, but without any real substance) and subtracted one point for things that really made me angry (for stuff like the concentration camp-reference and similar things).

A masterpiece

[Sayasam · 10/10 · 6 October 2013]

Yann-Arthur Bertrand is known in France for being the best Earth photograph involved in ecology ever.

This movie is just beau-ti-ful.

You never saw the world that way.

You never knew there were so much diversity all around the Earth, so much things to see, so much beautiful creations.

And you never knew there were so much left.

A must-watch.

Wonderful scenes, really beautiful pictures of Earth.

Tip : there is a long-version.

Stunning visuals served alongside dumbed down quasi-spiritual environmentalism

[Streltsy · 6/10 · 20 June 2012]

Stunning and unique all-aerial visuals, great emotive soundtrack, and an admirable attempt to raise awareness about the interconnectivity of Earth's ecosystems; But anyone with even some basic education in biology and ecology should feel conflicted enjoying this documentary.

This doc presents and promotes a quasi-mystical outlook upon our planet's ecosystems and our place within them. First, the fact that our growth is "faster and faster" as the narrator harps on (while ominous music plays) isn't something evil, unique, or something we should feel guilty about. Nor does "every animal have its place", nor does huge wealth disparity (shitty though it may be) have much to do with environmental problems (or at least it certainly isn't explained here).

Humans are organisms, and like any other organism we will follow exponential growth in ideal conditions and infinite resources. Our expansion and over-exploitation of resources is also not a product of modern society or even the industrial revolution (timber and game in pre-industrial Europe was heavily overexploited as an example), and hunter-gatherer or horticultural civilizations (ex. Native Americans) were also not more environmentally wise than us (they simply expanded to the extent the carrying capacity of their technology allowed for). Humanity, as every other species, does not owe anything to any other species because we are not apart from them. First we must understand that we are another species, and subject to the same natural urges to consume and expand as any other species.

The goal of promoting environmentalism is good, as is showing some great examples of our devastation upon the Earth. I just wish the documentary wasn't dumbed down with spiritual drivel for the masses. There are plenty of good practical reasons to try to preserve ecosystems and prevent global warming without invoking guilt about how we've destroyed some holy balance.

Still, the doc is worth watching for the visuals alone.

A film that was made for lots of reasons...but not to rescue the planet.

[cs-69 · 5/10 · 18 January 2010]

You might call it "l'art pour l'art". And stunningly beautiful it is. But 120 minutes of beauty still don't make it a film. A film needs pictures, but it also needs a true vision.

It is a published fact that the aerial cameraman Yann Arthus-Bertrand got the funding by Francois-Henri Pinault to shoot this movie long before it was ever decided what exactly it should be. In fact, after shooting for years in more than 50 countries, Arthus-Bertrand returned with a truck load of stunning footage. A lot of pictures and no story. The only common denominator being the expertise of camera aesthetics and an encyclopedic knowledge of hundreds of the best locations worldwide. After screening it, he couldn't help feeling a bit helpless, maybe even desperate. He had spent a lot of money and all he had to show for was beauty. Although his sponsors make a lot of money selling beauty, it is rather the story behind the beauty that is the selling proposition. Arthus-Bertrand had no story, except maybe the adventure tales of such an extreme undertaking.

This is where Isabelle Delannoy comes to the rescue. A woman who knows neither fear nor scruple. She takes a cunning look at the footage and knows how to tag it. She doesn't care that most funds for this project originate from enterprises selling to the happy few who account for 25% of global pollution and exploitation. Nor, that chasing hundreds of helicopters, jets and piston planes around the planet most probably had a carbon-dioxide balance comparable to a mid-sized western city. Nevertheless, Arthus-Bertrand is happy. Now he has a story and something to show for. Regardless how cynical it is, a bad story is still a lot better than none at all.

And here we are: looking at awesome pictures. And again awesome pictures, and yet more awesome pictures...and a narration that should make anyone blush who took money for writing or reading it.

So, what is it? It is not a documentary. Is it a sermon? Is it the letter of indulgence for PPR? Or PR for PPR? Or all of the above? It is certainly beautiful. But as in the case of Dorian Gray, there sometimes lies a very ugly truth behind a stunningly beautiful surface...

Wake up call!..

[ariyamaya82 · 10/10 · 6 June 2009]

It's really sad to see so few votes about something that was done by the people who actually feel responsible about our "home" planet Earth. Especially considering the effort it took for the ones who made this wake up call. I would love to be hopeful about the future of us humans. But the ratings on IMDb imply so much about how aware we are about what we've been doing to our home. This documentary was significantly meant to be on all around the world, in 90 different countries, the same day, the 5th of June, which happens(!) to be "World Environment Day".

The purpose was basically to reach as many people as possible all around the world. Many things were done for the same call. But to be honest it's hard to say a lot has changed. For the ones who want to see it is in front of our eyes that our planet is responding to the things we've been doing, and the way we're dominating every living thing with the planet itself. But hey! We are nothing old compared to the planet's age. Our planet is 4.5 billion years old. It's seen lots of species before us. Some of them were wiped out. Not because they ruined the planet's own cycle. But because it is an ever-changing journey in a massive time scale. But we humans actually started a new geological era with the things we've been doing, effecting the very environment that created us. This documentary tells us "the story of us" leaving the ending for us to conclude. And to be aware -as Dr. Iain Stewart once said- that "planet Earth doesn't need to be saved. Earth is a great survivor. It's not the planet we should be worrying about. It is us". But the end is near. I think no one will deny it when it happens. I just hope people actually wake up, and start saving "us". Watch this documentary, people! And tell people to watch it. Because it is for all of us. Including the things we love. Thanks to everyone who took part in making it.

Amazing, stunning, eye-opening, thorough ...

[jhuni_x · 10/10 · 23 June 2009]

This movie explores the corruption of modern society in a very thorough manner. It explores the corruption in the agricultural industry, where in America we produce enough surplus food that we could end starvation around the world but instead we waste it on things like the meat packing industry.

This movie demonstrates how the meat-packing industry wastes massive amounts of water, power, and food where the meat is about 5% of the food that was given at hand. They also describe how the meat packing industry is one of the greatest causes of air pollution because in fact many of the chemicals released from meat packing are worse then CO2 and the UN said that meat packing contributes more to global warming than the cars.

They don't mention it but meat and other forms of processed foods are really bad for people's health which is why the more developed societies have things like Colon Cancer, Heart Disease, and Obesity, well poorer societies do not and it is extremely cruel to animals. This is why I personally am a vegetarian.

This movie even explores how some people are using solar power to create a better life-style but that is not enough we need a government in the world that actually cares about this stuff instead of caring about pleasing the corporate bosses who are destroying the earth anyways.

This movie also explains how we are cutting down the Amazon rain-forest and we have already got rid of more then 20% of it and if we get rid of the entire thing there won't be much hope left for humanity. Humanity will be doomed. Considering that I am less then twenty I might live to see the earth turn into easter island. I have heard that by 2030 we will lose half of the amazon. Who knows maybe in 2050 we will lose the Earth.

Beautiful, but somehow flawed.

[imdb-21875 · 8/10 · 17 June 2009]

The cinematography is absolutely stunning.

This film is beautiful, and some of the sequences are pure genius. The Dubai skyscraper, the oil tanker at sea, and the tar sands are all jaw-dropping. The 'natural' environments are the focus of the story - and they do not disappoint either. Icebergs, rainforests and deserts complete a stunning canvas.

The music is also perfectly pitched, matching the visuals perfectly, and, by using a palette that goes from ethereal voices to frantic orchestration, tells a complex story all on its own.

But... add in Glenn Close and her earnest recital, and suddenly it's less clear what this film is about. Evolution? The history of civilization? Over-population? Poverty? Education? The nature of human greed? Evil multinationals? Defence spending?! Or simply climate change? - which is reached quite late in the film, and by which point we're quite punch-drunk with a barrage of statistics.

(With the visual and aural parts of my brain already in overdrive, the mathematical portion can't keep up.)

The overarching message could have been a simple, powerful one: because of immutable human nature, our influence over the planet is vast and accelerating. We've probably reached the point of no return, and we don't know what's going to happen next. But here it got fluffed up with a roster of teenage naivety: "feed the poor", "stop buying guns", "love nature", "why can't we just all get along?" - as though somehow Ms Close might be able to compel us to unwind our oldest primeval urges.

The opportunity was there for a dialogue on the circumstances of a species that thinks it has beaten evolution, the Pyrrhic nature of that claim - and the likelihood that it's about to get its comeuppance.

Instead, I left the viewing with the impression that the film-makers thought that solar panels, Grameen Bank, rerouting defence budgets to aid for developing countries, peace, love - and a clever power station in Denmark - were going to make everything OK.

Clearly they don't actually think that. Perhaps they felt obligated to tack on a relatively optimistic ending. They certainly didn't come up with any ideas for the taboo, yet inevitable, issue of population.

So in summary...

An admirable project with an incredible aesthetic vocabulary. Even without the commentary, it serves as an awe-inspiring and wary induction to responsible species-hood.

However, this is going to be an extremely traumatic century - yes, I think we knew that - but, overlaid with dialogue, this film shouldn't pretend we know what to do about it.

Stunning, spectacular and emotional!

[shazameenrazeek · 10/10 · 2 January 2010]

This one took my breathe away, made me cry even. It was enlightening, spiritual and entertaining, all at the same time. IMHO it trumps the best blockbuster that Hollywood can ever produce. It's main actor, this tiny blue planet we call Mother Earth. It gave me a glimpse of earth like I've never seen before. The imagery is stunning and awe-inspiring. Just when you think they've run out of the best footage, you get to feast your eyes on something better. The soundtrack is amazing too and the narrator Gless Close does an exceptional job. All in all, this gem of a documentary puts a lot of things into perspective. It made a lasting impression on me...and I only wish every single human being on earth can watch it.

A great documentary on a grave matter: ourselves

[Alecssei · 10/10 · 5 June 2009]

'Home' is the title of an incredible documentary that tries to make ourselves understand how it came to the catastrophic situation regarding our planet. (the picture can be watches online for free: http://www.youtube.com/user/homeproject).

5 times Academy-Award nominee, Glenn Close , narrates the 90 minute-long picture that illustrates the worst of our fears: the decay of our planet. Several times throughout the picture, it is underlined that in the past 5 decades, human kind has changed the face of our planet more than it has in it's 200.000 years of existence. In the past 50 years has the Planet been depleted of some of it's most precious minerals and soil treasures - including the most precious of them all: WATER.

One of the reasons I loved the documentary so much, is that it names a lot of names; it doesn't only name the reasons why our planet is suffering, but it also tells the viewer who is responsible for it. Tokyo and Lagos, (2 of the most developing cities worldwide) and India, Bangladesh and USA are named to be the greatest consumers of our resources - the cost to sustain the lives of the hundreds of millions of people are so incredible huge, that in only a few decades we will have depleted all the available resources.

Another reason I truly recommend this documentary is, that it gave us an example of what could and eventually will happen of the human race. Apparently, there existed a highly educated and developed civilization on the Easter Islands. Although they were struck by famine, riots and natural catastrophes, it always survived because of the human mind. However, the people depleted the island of all of its resources until they starved to death.

The documentary states several times that we became dependent of oil, petroleum and the several other forms of the 'black gold'. We are reminded that although we have already run out of oil in some of the corners of our planet, we still drill, dig and try to find more and more. Impressive images of Arabia and Africa are shown to let us know that we also ran out of under-earthed water supplies. Water is used for almost everything in our daily routine, from washing our cars and watering the tropical paradise of the desert located Las Vegas to cultivating grain for the life stock we depend upon.

The human greed, its quickly development and the impossibility to sustain life as it is nowadays (without destructing its own planet) damages permanently the balance of nature. "We are living in exceptional times. Scientists tell us that we have 10 years to change the way we live, avert the depletion of natural resources and the catastrophic evolution of the Earth's climate." (quote from the Homeproject Youtube channel - the link is above).

I recommend the documentary to everybody who still believes that living the American dram of heaving a big house and 2 cars is still the way to go.

Its a documentary

[mike-2057 · 10/10 · 22 June 2009]

Zero vince sates that HOME is not a documentary because it doesn't document anything.

This is an absurd comment because most of the movie is of real life scenes that are not set up.

The editorial aspect is in the script and to a lesser extent the editing. This is no different than a photojournalist documenting life, then the pictures being laid out in a magazine

Every frame is a document, the the same way a still photographer documents life so can a motion picture camera.

Mike

It gives us some food for thought

[DataCraft · 29 June 2009]

The movie is a very good interpretation of what mankind has done over the last century. Modernization, urbanization, the increasing demand for more raw material, fresh water and oil will not cease. What can be done instead is to rethink about the way we live now. The movie begins with a soft introduction about how the planet came to be and gradually it starts introducing the humankind factor. Compared to "An Inconvenient Truth" it is more visual telling, it's not only about the global warming factor and if it helps some people who think that "An Inconvenient Truth" was politically motivated then they should check out this movie. The fact is that we just started giving a damn, we did not give a damn 15 years before at all but now maybe some of us would understand. We made a habit of changing the world we live to suit our needs I think we should spare no effort in giving back some of what was taken form our planet.

Wonderful exaggeration of a not-very-precarious world.

[Koundinya · 7/10 · 6 July 2012]

Any nature-lover will love the movie as much as i did. It's a documentary that leaves any viewer contemplating.

Breath-taking footage of the existing and unexplored places on Earth and the looming darkness that would engulf this beauty if the rapid industrialization and commercialization is not put to check is the theme of this documentary.

The effort of the documentary makers to capture the stunning reality- be it the farms in France or the fragmented arctic ocean that makes way for the cargo ship- is much appreciated.

Some facts might sound a bit exaggerated but that bolsters the argument on what the repercussions of our rampant industrial activity would lead to.

A wake-up call

[nimrod_ger · 10/10 · 25 July 2009]

OMG what a wonderful documentary. It not only has an important message, it also has the most beautiful pictures of our planet that I have EVER seen! The narration is spoken by Glenn Close, and what a wonderful choice she is: calm, but very intense. She makes sure that you will understand that there's not much time left to save our planet, and if we do not act NOW it might be too late. Watch this film and see how everything on our beautiful planet is interlinked. No species will survive on its own, and the homo sapiens is no exception whatsoever. It was us 'intelligent human beings' who created all of our current problems, and it only took us 50 years to do that. We can still save this planet, but it's high time to start doing that. Watch this movie, think, then ACT! I would like to thank everybody who took part in making this film! It's truly a wake-up call!

A movie that calls upon humans to save home.

[luisgut92 · 7/10 · 6 November 2014]

The movie gives beautiful aerial views of the planet to give a visual on the beauty of Earth and also the impact of human beings. The aerial views makes one really notice how beautiful Earth is as our HOME. It is hard to comprehend how beautiful the Earth is even though parts of it are being negatively impacted by us. The movie provides a background and explanation of how everything in nature is interlinked in the hopes of convincing any skeptic or doubter about the impacts of humanity. While the movie highlights the already present dangers of the impact of humans, it offers some hope in reversing these effects. The combination of the aerial views and the tone of the narrator are almost meant to scare the viewer in the hopes of motivating viewers to act on stopping the negative impacts on the Earth by people. Just as technology is constantly evolving, human care of the world's ecosystem must evolve. The combination of efficient use of our resources and reducing our impact should restore the balance now lost. Movie should be seen all as it provides a wake up call with visuals.

Visually amazing, but with boring propaganda

[jonnelander · 5/10 · 23 July 2009]

This is my first review on IMDb. I believe this movie is very visually compelling, but thats about it. The female narrator seems to be telling a child over and over how bad we behave on this planet, with no focus on any real subject, basically just numbers and statistics thrown at you, nothing new, we all seen or heard it before. She's actually quite disturbing. Where did you get your numbers from? why are you repeating everything? Do I look stupid to you, I'm not a child. Maybe its what many of us needs to hear? Maybe thats the focus, to hammer this sort of propaganda into our skulls. But Im still dissatisfied with this movie, didn't meet my expectations in any way.. Maybe you should turn of the volume, put on some cool tunes instead, and watch it on a big plasma..

And impressionistic aerial view of the earth.

[endymionng · 10/10 · 17 June 2009]

Some will have reservations regarding this movie both in terms of the narration and the scope of what it tries to explain, even though most people who actively choose to see this will already now most of the information presented...

Still the visuals is THE redeeming factor here and it makes it the best successor to Koyaanisqatsi (1982) since then. And yes i HAVE seen a lot of the other recent environmental and nature documentaries and I also liked Al Gore's "truth" :-) .

Consider several shots where you cannot immediately figure out what on "earth" you are watching other than some beautiful colors that might as well be an impressionist painting and then the camera slowly zooms out to reveal for instance the plastic covered fields in Almeria or rice fields on a mountain or suddenly some humans appear floating into the frame in the distance and the camera rises to show them in a boat on a canal... It is just stunningly breathtaking and it is like that ALL THE TIME in the entire movie! For people who knows Bertrand's still photographs this is not surprising, but seeing it in moving form and presented as a narrative does actually increase the impact considerably.

So yes this is a definite 10 in my book, purely because of these visuals - As for the politics, I however don't see a way out of this mess unless we get some serious decrease in the worlds population and soon..., which is a point that this movie really does not want to address. Highly recommended, but do yourself a favor and watch it in HD 720p or more.