DVD Review: The Blue Planet: Seas of Life 5-Disc Special Edition

This is an online review of the DVD The Blue Planet: Seas of Life 5-Disc Special Edition. With synopsis, cast, pictures, wallpapers, where to buy it and more.

 
     
 

DVD Review: The Blue Planet: Seas of Life 5-Disc Special Edition

DVD Review: The Blue Planet: Seas of Life 5-Disc Special EditionSynopsis:
Before creating the monumental Planet Earth, producer Alastair Fothergill and his team from the BBC put together one of the most breathtaking explorations of the world's oceans ever assembled, The Blue Planet: Seas of Life. Winner of two Emmy Awards, this documentary is the definitive exploration of the marine world, chronicling the mysteries of the deep in ways never before imagined. It is now being re-released in an all-new special edition, with an added 5th disc of bonus programming not included in the original DVD release. See it again, like never before!

Incredible footage and eloquent narration by legendary naturalist Sir David Attenborough highlight this “masterpiece…the finest documentary on the world’s oceans that any human being has ever seen.” (Newsday). The original material include the episodes Ocean World, Frozen Seas, Open Ocean, The Deep, Seasonal Seas, Coral Seas, Tidal Seas and Coasts.

With the new features you can you can now discover the astonishing creatures living deep inside one of Earth’s most spectacular environments in Amazon Abyss, venture to the underwater haven of Cocos Island and explore the terrifying residents in Dive to Shark Volcano, witness what many experts hail as the definitive portrayal of a cold, desolate continent in Antarctica or explore a frozen estuary and its many natural tidal spectacles in Between the Tides. Other extras include 80 minutes of behind-the-scenes featurettes; interviews, photo galleries, fact files and more.

Cast: Sir David Attenborough (narrator) / Director: Alastair Fothergill

The Blue Planet: Seas of Life 5-Disc Special Edition Pictures and Wallpapers:
DVD front cover DVD front cover 2

Prices and where to buy it:
You can buy the DVD The Blue Planet: Seas of Life 5-Disc Special Edition at Amazon.com

Critic Quotes and Reviews:
- “...a masterpiece.” Newsday.
- "Anyone with a fascination with the ocean or even a passing interest should snap these discs up...highly recommended."  NeedCoffee.com
- "...mind-boggling...one of those series you actually feel privileged to watch."  The Telegraph
- "...as awe-inspiring as anything you are ever likely to see on television."  The Times
- "If there was a Nobel prize for documentary filmmaking, these producers would get it."  The Wall Street Journal

DVD Information:
Format: Box set, Closed-captioned, Color, DVD-Video, Special Edition, Widescreen, NTSC
Genre: Documentary / Nature & Wildlife
Runtime: About 6 2/3 hours
Screen Aspect: 1.66:1 Widescreen
Sound Quality: English Dolby Digital Stereo
Subtitles: -
Media Quantity: 5 DVD Discs

Other Information and Links:
Studio: BBC Video / Warner Brothers
DVD Release Date: October 2, 2007
Official link: BBC Americas Shop

DVD Features:

  • Fact Files
  • Featurette: 80 Minutes Of Behind The Scenes Footage - One 10-Minute Behind The Scenes Program For Each Episode
  • Audio: English Dolby Digital Stereo
  • New Documentaries:
    - Amazon Abyss - In The Depths Of The Amazon Live An Amazing Array Of Astonishing Creatures
    - Dive To Shark Volcano - Venture To Cocos Island, An Underwater Volcano Whose Waters Are A Haven For Sharks
    - Between The Tides - Exploring The Distinctive Sights & Sounds Of An Estuary In Winter, Featuring Many Natural Spectacles Caused By The Tide
    - Antarctica - An Examination Of The Cold, Desolate Continent Of Antarctica
  • Interactive Menus
  • Interviews With Series Producers Alastair Fothergill & Doug Allen, & Researcher Penny Allen
  • Photo Gallery
  • Scene Selection

Official Information:

THE BLUE PLANET: SEAS OF LIFE 5-DISC SPECIAL EDITION

Featuring Four Never-Before-Released to DVD Documentaries, Multi Emmy® Award-Winning Series From Planet Earth Producer Alastair Fothergill Arrives at Retail on October 2, 2007

NEW YORK, NY— Join the team behind the blockbuster, Emmy-nominated documentary series Planet Earth for an awe-inspiring voyage to the world’s least explored frontier -- the ocean -- in the BBC Video DVD box set release The Blue Planet: Seas of Life 5-Disc Special Edition. Presented by Sir David Attenborough and produced by Alastair Fothergill, this spellbinding series won two Emmy Awards (Outstanding Cinematography -- Non Fiction and Outstanding Music Composition for George Fenton’s (Dangerous Liaisons, Cry Freedom, Gandhi) sweeping score. From the BBC Natural History Unit -- which is celebrating its 50th Anniversary this year -- The Blue Planet: Seas of Life is the first comprehensive documentary on the natural history of the world’s oceans. And this remarkable new special edition also contains an additional 80 minutes of behind-the-scenes footage and crew interviews plus four never-before-released to DVD documentaries. This must-own DVD arrives at retail on October 2, 2007 for the suggested retail price of $59.98. Additionally, on the same date, BBC Video is releasing the 10-disc Planet Earth/The Blue Planet: Seas of Life Collector’s Set, which features both ground-breaking documentary series for the suggested retail price of $119.99.

About The Blue Planet: Seas Of Life
Five years in the making with a budget of over $10 million, The Blue Planet: Seas of Life is a groundbreaking series that reveals some of the ocean’s most guarded secrets. This breathtaking exploration captures the sea at its most fearsome and alluring, exposing stories of survival against the odds and unearthing new species, behaviors never before caught on camera. With the assistance of technological and photographic breakthroughs, the ocean and its inhabitants are brought to the screen in majestic fashion.

DVD Extras:
The Blue Planet: Seas of Life 5-Disc Special Edition contains all the bonus features included in the original 4-disc DVD release plus over three hours of all-new bonus features:
All New Bonus Features:

  • Amazon Abyss – Discover an amazing array of astonishing creatures living in the depths of the Amazon
  • Dive to Shark Volcano – Venture to Cocos Island, an underwater volcano whose waters are a haven for sharks
  • Between the Tides – Explore the distinctive sights and sounds of an estuary in winter, featuring many natural spectacles caused by the tide.
  • Antarctica – Survey the cold, desolate continent of Antarctica.

Additional Bonus Features:

  • Eighty minutes of behind-the-scenes footage – one 10-minute featurette for each episode.
  • Interviews with cameraman Doug Allan, producer Alastair Fothergill and researcher Penny Allen.
  • Deep Trouble – A compelling exploration of the impact of civilization on the oceans.
  • Photo Galleries and Fact Files.

Episode Synopses:

Episode 1 – Ocean World
Learn how the sun and moon help control and tame the ocean. Travel far and wide - from the Eastern Pacific to Alaska, from the Bering Sea to the shores of Southern California - and begin to understand the complexity and power of our oceans.

Episode 2 – Frozen Seas
An environment where only the toughest survive, the Arctic and Antarctic are unrelenting habitats. Only in the spring does life begin again.  Plankton blooms and feeds vast hordes of migrating fish, walruses rake the seabed for clams, and minke and humpback whales gorge themselves on gigantic swarms of krill.  But it is a brief spring feast – the ice soon returns and pushes life back into the ocean

Episode 3 – Open Ocean
In the immense space of the open ocean, the sea bed is a staggering five miles below the surface.  Endless blue stretches in every direction.  In this marine desert there is nothing but the burning sun above and the blackened abyss below–yet here live many of the most spectacular predators in the ocean.

Episode 4 – The Deep
A place of mountain ranges, perpetual night, pressure extremes and cold and the weirdest life forms on our planet.  Dive to the depths of the ocean, an eerie world where predators with teeth so large they can’t even close their mouths chase bioluminescent creatures of the deep.  Discover the spectacular smoking chimneys of the hydrothermal vents.

Episode 5 – Seasonal Seas
As the days grow longer, billions of microscopic plankton bloom under the blazing sun.  Here in the temperate seas, three-ton sharks graze among forests of giant kelp – the fastest-growing plant in the world.  The forests harbor thousands of other animals, including sea otters, brilliantly-colored anemones, squid, and exquisite leafy dragons.  But as the year wears on, storms rage in the icy sea creating a desperate challenge for the animals that remain.

Episode 6 – Coral Seas
Bathed in bright sunlight and warm, clear water, the coral reef is a rich oasis of life – the rainforest of the sea.  Bizarrely adorned harlequin shrimp carry off a starfish several times their size, while haunting songs reverberate around the reef, heralding the arrival of humpback whales.  Shimmering schools of brightly colored fish battle for territory in this competitive world where you have to stand out to survive.

Episode 7 – Tidal Seas
The sun and moon move billions of tons of water around the world with every turn of the tide.  The strongest tides empty entire bays, smash trees on riverbanks, and strand sea creatures on suddenly dry land.  Weaker tides control the movements of huge numbers of fish, coaxing schools of giant stingrays through astounding underwater arches.  And as the water recedes, the tide can create unbelievable landscapes like a sparkling world of salt crystals inhabited only by tiny shrimp and bright pink flamingos.

Episode 8 – Coasts
From rocky cliffs to gentle dunes, the coasts are always changing.  Day in, day out, they are battered by crashing waves.  Seabirds come here by the thousands to nest, while baby turtles hatch and race to the sea, pursued by hungry predators.  Young sea lion pups are born and play on the sand until a killer whale attacks, crashing in on the surf.  But when breeding season is over, life returns to the sea and the shores are empty once again.


 

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