The Donner Party (1992)
- Directed by
- Ric Burns
- Genre
- documentary film
- Country
- United States
- Runtime
- 1h 30m
- Rating
- 7.0 of 10 from 12 voters
- Elsewhere
- IMDb
The catalogue in 3D
The film shelves have a room of their own that you can walk around in. The cat behind the counter is the AI Catbot, and they pick real films from the same catalogue when you tell them what you feel like watching. Nothing is for sale, here or in there. Go in from here and this film is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.
How it feels
This documentary recounts the journey of a group of American pioneers traveling from Illinois to California in the 1840s. The expedition encountered severe hardships and became infamous for the survivors' accounts of resorting to cannibalism.
historicalsoberingbleaksomberreflectiveeducationalunsettlingslow-paced
What happens
The Donner Party is a 1992 documentary film that traces the history of the Donner Party, an ill-fated pioneer group that trekked from Springfield, Illinois to Sutter's Fort, California - a disastrous journey of 2500 miles made famous by the tales of cannibalism the survivors told upon reaching their destination. The film, narrated by David McCullough, premiered at the Telluride Mountainfilm Festival in May 1992 with an introductory lecture on the Donner Party by noted Western historian David Lavender. It subsequently aired on PBS as part of the American Experience program in October, 1992. It was funded in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities. The film was produced using a combination of archival materials, including letters, photographs, paintings, and diaries from members of the Donner Party, as well as new footage shot of the trail the Party journeyed along in Oregon and California. Animated maps are used to show the route the Donner Party took. On-camera experts include Harold Schindler, Joseph King, Donald Buck, and Wallace Stegner. Timothy Hutton, Amy Madigan, Frances Sternhagen, George Plimpton, Lois Smith, and Eli Wallach perform the letters and diaries written by the Donner Party before, during, and after their journey. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)
More like this
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War Against the Indians (1992)
The Walk (2001)
Beyond the Gates of Splendor (2002)
Koyaanisqatsi (1982)
The Missions of California (2007)- More like this film, on a shelf you can walk up to.It's the lit case on the top shelf.