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A visual feast shot in 25 different countries and on eye-watering
70mm film, the old gold standard of Hollywood. A natural predecessor to IMAX, Its level of depth and colour are staggering and here we see it used to terrific effect. The beautiful and
sprawling imagery is used to explore many threads of our life on earth. From
the serene beauty of shifting sands to the endless spread of urban sprawl. The
contrasts may at times be painted with broad strokes- Wealth and poverty, Over-production
and Waste, Eastern and western philosophies, Spiritual fulfilment and anonymous
city life- but the sheer scale of the imagery makes up for it.
Documentary
filmmaking has always loved damning the human race’s great vices- Food, Greed
and Sex- But never before has it been shown on such a grand and harrowing scale.
The rows of weaponry and sex dolls send plenty of shivers down the spine but
the production lines and factories of the livestock industry are where the true
terror lies. You would need a heart of stone not to think twice about your next
Schwarma. Wealth is also given it’s time in the spotlight, highlighted by Dubai’s
absurd Palm Islands archipelago of
reclaimed land with its rows of faceless mansions and super rich oil barons.
Fricke and Magidson contrast this with sobering shots of endless slums and 3rd
world hunger. Spirituality plays a big role too. Beautifully shot sequences of
eastern rituals are dotted around the movie, allowing the viewer to come up for
air amid all this smothering consumption.
The power
of these images rocks you to the core but there is a more subtle tale being
told as the film ponders one of modern living's great questions: What is the true value of time? Today most people would probably value time more than money, shaving off
minutes with bullet trains, fast food and fingertip information. Fricke and Magidson show the western world consuming it like any other commodity while with the monks in Nepal it seems to stand still. But what is lost in this blur of motion, how can
we contemplate anything when our minds are so constantly charged with information. It is a major concern
of contemporary life, and perhaps one we need to confront.
