- Actors: Martin Sheen
- Director: Thierry Ragobert
- Disc Format: AC-3, Closed-captioned, Color, Dolby, NTSC, Subtitled, Widescreen
- Language: English
- Subtitles: English
- Region: Region 1
- Number of discs: 1
- Rated: G
- Studio: Lionsgate
- DVD Release Date: October 4, 2016
- Run Time: 93 minutes
Amazonia is a
strange amalgamation of scripted narrative film and nature documentary, which
seems unconventional by today’s standards despite a tradition of these type of
films from Disney in the past. Though the facts about nature are accurate and
informative, we follow a single narrative involving a monkey which has clearly
been fabricated as the vehicle for the delivery of educational information.
Though there may be some who will prefer the realism of actual nature
documentary material, Amazonia is perfect for younger audiences unaccustomed to
the more unpredictable elements of nature. This G-rated film provide
educational information within the safety of a sanitized script.
The loose
narrative follows the journey of a trained Capuchin monkey that suddenly finds
himself in the Amazon jungle for the first time after the plane transporting
him crashes. Forced to fend for himself for the first time, this tiny creature
navigates his way through the jungle, giving the audience a tour of the many
marvels and dangers that the wilderness has to offer along the way. Eventually
the small monkey finds a group of wild Capuchins, though he must convince them
that he belongs.
Though the story
for Amazonia is extremely simplistic, that does not mean it is dull. There are
so many dangers facing our small hero that the viewing experience is often
quite stressful. Even with the guarantee of a happy ending, I can imagine some
of the more frightening sequences may not go over well with extremely young
viewers. The plane crash sequence is an obvious concern, though this is only
the beginning of intense situation our monkey hero finds himself in. Children
may also have some difficulty understanding the environmental message inserted
into the narrative at the end, though it certainly has modern relevance.
Originally
released in 3D, I’m afraid some of the spectacle of the film has been lost in
the transfer to home entertainment. The DVD version doesn’t even have the high
definition detail to marvel at, though it does have a few extras that kids will
appreciate. Along with a making-of featurette to show how they filmed the story
without ever putting the monkey star in danger, there are also mini bonus
documentary episodes, which focus on creatures outside of the Amazon as well.
There is also a trailer gallery.
Entertainment Value:
6/10
Quality of
Filmmaking: 5.5/10
Historical
Significance: 3/10
Special Features: 0/10
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