The Perfect Planet Review: David Attenborough's Brisk Narration And Jaw-Dropping Camerawork Make This Docu-Series A Must Watch (LatestLY Exclusive)

The Perfect Planet review: We all live in a bubble and to us, nothing exists beyond the peripherals of that bubble. We often forget this world is not just vast but also magical. Sony BBC Eart's The Perfect Planet introduces us to the very thing we often forget or take for granted - The Earth. Dividing the series into five chapters across five episodes, this series is the most invigorating account of how unaware we are about several species on earth that make what it is today. From David Attenborough’s ‘A Life on Our Planet’ to ‘Chasing Coral’, Eye-Opening Environmental Documentaries to Binge-Watch

Every episode takes a feature of the earth and weaves a narrative around how they impact the living beings. It begins with Volcano and ends on...no points for guessing, Humans! The whole agenda behind the docu-series is to arrive at the fact that human interference in every sphere is threatening extinction over a lot of species. The way the storyline is put together in the five episodes gives a gradual hint at how things were and how things have transformed due to drastic climate changes over the year. The episodes are also filled with irony, as that's how nature works.

Volcanoes, thought to be the most violent of all of earth's landscapes, are actually the most fertile source. Land exists because there're volcanoes forming them through the oozing molten lava that hardens and solidifies to form the firm ground. It then moves to the Sun, the source of our existence, and how over the years, the heat has become excruciatingly unnatural.

David Attenborough's deft narration is unusually effective, guess comes from being an Oscar-winning filmmaker.  It's brisk, laid back, and has a soft, caressing impact on you. It's as if he isn't talking about an Iguana's egg burying ritual but a bedtime story about prince and princess. He keeps the tone matter-of-factly and adds perfect pauses to make a natural act seem more dramatic than it is. What works here is that the visuals are as powerful.

Camerawork needs to be talked about here as it's just stunning. The visuals have been captured brilliantly. It isn't a mean task to capture so many animals at the action and that makes it even more interesting. There's a scene in the second episode where the wood frog comes back to life after many months of hibernating. The whole process of the frog getting its life back like a Vampire Diaries episode to fascinatingly captured. Of course, the editing department has done an exemplary job here.

Huw Cordey and Nick Shoolingin-Jordan, the directors of the series, have managed to weave these stories like a drama with an intro, a remarkable introduction of the main character, heightened conflict and a nail-biting finish. The scene where a flamingo cheek collapses after walking miles in pursuit of safe haven and its eyes go still is chilling imagery that will stay with you! Then there's also the rain frog in the hot desert who is lazy to even eat - so us!

What makes it even more powerful is the background score. The sound department has done an outstanding job of heightening a moment to a peak. At times such an animated score makes the experience jarring but in this case, it adds to what's happening on screen and Attenborough's relaxed yet intense narration. The last episode culminates in the main source of every climate disturbance today, humans who have been treated so well that it will make you question yourself.

The only drawback I could think of was the names of the places talked about are said in a hurry and so at times, it gets difficult to remember where we are!

Yay!

• Dramatic narrative
• Fascinating visuals
• Perfect narration by David Attenborough

Nay!

• No naming of locations

Final Thoughts:

The Perfect Planet is a perfect docu-series is a must-watch for its mission to enlighten humans about what we are doing to Earth and its creatures. The Perfect Planet will air on Sony BBC Earth on March 8 at 9 PM.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 07, 2021 10:00 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).