Underplayed Gems

Walking with Monsters (2005)

Walking with Monsters poster
Directed by
Tim Haines
Genre
nature documentary
Country
United Kingdom
Length
1 season, 3 episodes
Rated
NR
Rating
8.5 of 10 from 37 voters
Elsewhere
IMDb
The 3D catalogue: film cases on wooden shelves, with the cat sitting at the counter next to its greeting.

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 series is already out on the counter, with more like it waiting on the shelf next to it.

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How it feels

This nature documentary miniseries covers life in the Paleozoic era before the dinosaurs. It shows the evolution of early arthropods, fish, amphibians, reptiles, and synapsids using computer-generated imagery and animatronics. Kenneth Branagh narrates the three episodes.

informativeslow-pacedvisually strikingeducationalcalmnostalgicatmospheric

What happens

Walking with Monsters – Life Before Dinosaurs, marketed as Before the Dinosaurs – Walking with Monsters in North America, is a 2005 three-part nature documentary television miniseries created by Impossible Pictures and produced by the BBC Studios Science Unit, the Discovery Channel, ProSieben and France 3. Walking with Monsters explores life in the Paleozoic era, showcasing the early development of groups such as arthropods, fish, amphibians, reptiles and synapsids. Like its predecessors Walking with Dinosaurs (1999) and Walking with Beasts (2001), Walking with Monsters is narrated by Kenneth Branagh. Walking with Monsters is the final installment in the Walking with... series of documentaries and was envisioned as completing the series' so-called "Trilogy of Life", the previous Walking with Dinosaurs and Walking with Beasts having explored the Mesozoic and Cenozoic, respectively. Like its predecessors, Walking with Monsters employs computer-generated imagery and animatronics, as well as live action footage shot at various locations, to reconstruct prehistoric life and environments. Owing to being the latest installment, the CGI in Walking with Monsters is more sophisticated, which also contributed to a heavier reliance on CGI than animatronics than in previous series. In total, over 600 scientists were consulted for advice during the production of Walking with Monsters. Although Walking with Monsters attracted the least viewers out of any Walking with... series during its original airing and received more mixed reviews, the series won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program (For Programming One Hour or More). It was also nominated for a BAFTA TV Award for Best Visual Effects. Walking with Monsters was for some broadcasts (including its first) also edited together as a single 90-minute documentary film. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

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