MICROCOSMOS: LE PEUPLE DE L'HERBE
A film review by Steve Rhodes
Copyright 1996 Steve Rhodes
RATING (0 TO ****): ***
So what is beneath your feet? When told to be more observant, most people cast their eyes skyward to see what might be above them that they are missing. Few of us get down in the dirt to see those little critters who live in the grass jungle. And none of us have sensitive enough ears to heard the cacophony as the insects scurry about.
Now in theatrical release, the documentary MICROCOSMOS tells the life story of insects. Viewers, other than certified entomologists, will find the world of the insects a totally unknown and magical one full of sound and fury.
The film can even be seen as a romantic comedy, but this was the part my son liked least of all. When two snails begin their love dance, I found their white slime to have a gossamer radiance that was touching and beautiful. "Yuck," he said and had that scene at the top of least favorite list.
For the comedic part, there are two beetles that begin a romantic entanglement of such intensity that they almost shake themselves off the tiny branch on which they are perched. Like two lovers parked in a Volkswagen, their choice of locale is just too confining.
The brilliance of the documentary is not in the directing (Claude Nuridsany and Marie Perennou) nor the editing (Florence Ricard and Marie-Josephe Yoyotte) although both are well done. What makes the film come alive is the technical mastery of the cinematography by Thierry Machado, Claude Nuridsany, Marie Perennou, and Hugues Ryffel.
Most sequences start with your typical view of a field and then, as in HONEY I SHRUNK THE KIDS, the cameras move down to ground level. They use special lens to bring insects to life in incredible detail and with colors so bright they would put Disney to shame. Their color palette has an enormous range from reds to purples. If you are not in awe of nature before you enter the theater, you will be when you exit.
The photographers use some slow motion effects as when flowers are open. When a spider is busying turning grasshoppers into mummies, they speed up the action. Most of the scenes however are at normal speed. The action, however, will seem anything but normal to humans.
There are many great scenes in the picture. Perhaps the funniest is when two convoys of insects run into a traffic jam in the desert. Eventually they join forces and end up in an infinite loop.
Easily the most fascinating scene is that of the sacred beetle rolling its sheep dung pellet. How does a sacred beetle push a sheep dung pellet you ask? Well, he climbs on it with his nose to the ground and pushes it backwards. When it gets stuck on a small twig, the poor beetle's brain is too small to figure out the simple solution -- just go to the other side and push it off. Instead, our little guy uses sheer perseverance and hard work to dislodge it.
The insects' environment is full of hazards. A rain storm is a terrifying event to a water bug for example. Imagine you are out on a lake and drops the size of cars start pounding you. Pretty frightening. This is one of many times in MICROCOSMOS where the sound is even more impressive than the images.
There are some problems with the film that would have been easy to fix. The show bogs down toward the end. The last quarter operates at a slower pace, and little of interest is shown. My son fell asleep during this part, and I don't blame him.
The narration by Kristin Scott Thomas is almost non-existent. She says a few words at the start and at the end, but nothing more. More narration, as the wonderful Disney nature films from the 1950s showed, can add interest, humor, and enlightenment. I kept wondering what insect was I seeing and what was he doing. Finally, the music by Bruno Coulais is quite effective but is used all too sparsely.
MICROCOSMOS is a technical tour de force. I can't image missing something this unique. Besides, where else can you see a show suitable for kids without a single product tie-in?
MICROCOSMOS runs just 1:20, but would have been better with the last 15 minutes excised. The film has no humans and hence no human sex, nudity, or violence. Yes, the insects do have sex, but your little ones will never figure out what is going on unless you care to tell them. There is nothing in the show to scare even a two year old. My son Jeffrey, age 7 1/2, gives the show a "thumbs up but so slightly down that you couldn't tell." I recommend the film to you and your whole family and give it ***.
**** = One of the top few films of this or any year. A must see film. *** = Excellent show. Look for it. ** = Average movie. Kind of enjoyable. * = Poor show. Don't waste your money. 0 = One of the worst films of this or any year. Totally unbearable.
REVIEW WRITTEN ON: December 6, 1996
Opinions expressed are mine and not meant to reflect my employer's.
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