“Our planet: vulnerable and isolated.”
A unique and wholly different approach to his storytelling compared to the usual factual and specific documentaries, wildlife broadcaster and natural historian David Attenborough embarks on his newest documentary movie, and what he refers to as his witness statement and vision for the future; A Life on Our Planet (2020).
Sir David Attenborough. The most iconic and recognisable face of environmentalism and conservation. Having started his lucrative career in 1952, the now 94-year-old reflects on his life and the future of our planet in the most important and thought-provoking documentary of our time.
Whether his audience cares about the fate of the planet or not, Attenborough’s message refuses to be ignored, and A Life on Our Planet is his messenger pigeon. You simply cannot watch Attenborough’s latest, and perhaps his last, movie without feeling guilty in some way. However, feeling guilty in this regard is not a bad thing at all, and Attenborough brilliantly communicates this.
Recollecting upon the life he has led and the extraordinary things he has seen and done, Attenborough takes the audience on a journey of self-realisation. A journey in which the final destination is unknown, and one that Attenborough leaves us to decide upon - immediate change or further destruction to the planet. Revisiting the memories he holds dear from the beginning of his career provides the viewer with a fascinating insight into how different the world and the attitudes towards it were 70 years ago. Many of the places and the animals that occupy them that we know so well of today, were rarely heard of at this time.
Almost 2 hours in duration, Attenborough reflects on the environmental damage that has been done throughout his lifetime before posing solutions to the problem that we have created in the second half of the documentary. As Attenborough takes us through the decades, you begin to realise how serious the problem is.
Attenborough proves that anger, blame and violence were never the way to encourage change and help people realise the mistakes they are making. Simply placing the facts, the images, the difficult truth down in front of us can be enough to influence a mass awakening into joining him on his lifelong voyage to save the planet.
It is not just Attenborough’s heroic dedication to the natural world that captivates his audience. His fascinating voice and the message it carries demands the audience’s attention. The assistance of quick and short informative screens pop up to show the viewer just how much has changed throughout his extensive lifetime. The year, the population, the carbon in the atmosphere and the percentage of remaining wilderness at the time. White text upon a black screen. Simple, but effective.
Such reminders pop up frequently throughout the film, with each figure increasing while the percentage of remaining wilderness lowers. A bleak, alarming but subtle cry for change. He demands the viewer to wake up and see the destruction that encompasses us, without directly telling us to. He makes the viewer uncomfortable through soft storytelling, not through gore nor violence. This power remains unmatched and unrivalled. After all, would society trust such an important topic in the hands of anyone else but Sir David Attenborough? I think probably not.
Attenborough does not want to punish us – he wants to educate us. As brutally honest as the documentary may be, it is necessary. It is imperative. Exploitative it may be in exposing the one raw topic that we as humans have wished to avoid at all costs, it makes us look within ourselves, not just as a society but as individuals too. Attenborough tarnishes us all with a great sense of responsibility. Not forcefully, but almost in a meditative, hypnotising way. Attenborough seems to know how influential he is and uses the power he possesses to share the knowledge he can no longer keep to himself.
“Animals had to develop some physical ability to change their lives but for us, an idea could do that. An idea could be passed from one generation to the next.”
At a glance, the documentary seems one-sided. Attenborough is quite clearly on the side of the natural world; however, the film is not biased in any way. Attenborough consistently emphasises on the balance needed in the natural world for it to thrive and the circle of life to function as it should. This Yin and Yang notion is frequently drawn upon, a subtle reminder that we humans are mere mammals amongst the greatness of the species and ecosystems that share the planet with us, yet we have shown ourselves to be capable of easily throwing nature out of its harmonic balance. We see ourselves as Kings of the world, the most intelligent species. However, we do not rule kindly over this world – we destroy it.
Breath-taking and iconic shots of the Serengeti somewhat mimic Attenborough’s previous and most notable documentaries. There is a strange elegance to A Life on Our Planet that is unusual for a documentary of its tone and theme. Yet, it works extremely well. This unique aura that surrounds Attenborough’s latest film is quintessential of his previous work in this way.
Attenborough delivers the warning that we all needed - but not wanted - to hear. His calm and loveable persona make him that much easier to listen to, his words sinking their fangs into the mind of the viewer and as painful as they may be, we do not wish that he had not bitten us so hard - we thank him for it.
A Life on Our Planet is quite clearly an excellent insight into the dire future ahead of us – or will it be?
A Life on Our Planet is now available to stream on Netflix.