The Voyage that Shook the World (2009)

Original title

The Voyage That Shook the World

Directed by

Steve Murray

Genre

documentary film

Country

Australia

Runtime

52 min

Rating

1.5 of 10 from 2 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

This dramatised documentary covers the life of Charles Darwin and reactions to his theory of evolution. It presents interviews with supporters and critics of Darwin's ideas, including young Earth creationists. The film includes wildlife and location footage from places Darwin visited.

dramatisededucationaldebate-drivenreflectivebalanced tonehistoricalmoderate paceinformative

What happens

The Voyage That Shook The World is a 2009 dramatised documentary film commissioned by Creation Ministries International, a Christian Young Earth creationist organisation, and produced by Fathom Media. It was released to mark the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin's birth and the 150th anniversary of the publication of his seminal work On the Origin of Species. The film includes interviews with scholars, academics and scientists covering a wide range of views. These include some who accept the scientific consensus on evolution as well as proponents of intelligent design and young Earth creationism. It features wild-life footage from the Galapagos Islands as well as on-location footage from Argentina, Chile, Tierra del Fuego and the United Kingdom. The film's dramatised sequences were shot on location in Tasmania, Australia. A historian featured in the film has stated that the creationist backing of the film had been concealed when he agreed to take part, that the editing of his words could give a false impression of his views, and that the film presents a historically distorted portrait of Darwin. Creation Ministries agreed that they had set up a "front company" to approach experts. They denied any deception and stated that one of the interviewees had admitted that while the producers choose comments they "didn't distort what we said", and compared their approach to that used by the BBC in making documentaries. The three historians featured in the film subsequently issued a statement that they had been misrepresented by the film company's selective reconstruction of Darwin's voyage. CMI countered these claims with extended quotes from the interviews of the historians. Their response was described as appearing to be sound in specific aspects by American skeptic Jim Lippard, who had not seen the film at that time. Having seen the film, he described it as trying to hide its own creationism, which becomes increasingly apparent as the film progresses. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

More like this

• Darwin's Brave New World (2009)
• Charles Darwin and the Tree of Life (2009)
• Darwin et la science de l'évolution (2002)
• Darwin's Struggle: The Evolution of the Origin of Species (2009)
• Evolution. From the Birth of the Planets to the Age of Man (1923)
• Home (2009)
• The Genius of Charles Darwin (2008)
• The Darwin Adventure (1972)