David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet

A final plea from the godfather of natural history and the greatest broadcaster of our time, David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet chronicles the life & career of the extraordinary figure who's best known for presenting & narrating some of the greatest nature documentaries ever made, and is unparalleled for his contribution to educating the masses about Earth's natural & wildlife wonders, and the need to preserve it in the wake of mankind's utter disregard & reckless destruction of each n every habitat.

Directed by the crew that's been instrumental in echoing Attenborough's soothing & eloquent voice all over the world, this is a documentary of immediate relevance & urgency that serves as his personal witness statement for the natural world and future generation. Through his own first-hand account, he acquaints the audience with the overall decline of our planet's wildlife reserves and what the future holds if human exploits are allowed to continue at the alarming rate they already are at, and it sure doesn't look good.

Still, Attenborough is hopeful that we can turn things around if we act swiftly and even offers solutions to restore & stabilise our planet's biodiversity. It's gonna take a collective effort from people all over the world to reverse the damage and avoid the grim & devastating fate that awaits ahead. It will take an unprecedented level of international cooperation & collaboration to address the unprecedented global crisis that we face today yet what makes it depressing is the brutal realisation that it's probably too late and we are already past the point of no return.

As often is the case with the documentaries Attenborough has presented over the years, this film itself is gorgeously photographed and is interspersed with footage of his own time in the wild in order to draw comparison to the decline ecosystems have undergone over the years. And the difference is not only obvious but it's also extremely unsettling. Attenborough himself is just as graceful as he's always been in his presentation, with a genuine concern for the increasing rate at which we are depleting the natural resources and signing our own death certificate.

Overall, David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet is another masterfully crafted documentary of bracing impact & immediacy that finds its 93-year old naturalist taking the centerstage to remind us of our role & responsibility to mother nature and how our actions can ensure the survival of not only our species but all life on Earth. Compared to the extensively detailed nature documentaries he has been a part of, this one does seem brief at mere 83 mins but it captures a more personal side of the man who has seen more of the natural world than any other, and is by all means an essential viewing.

The saddest, yet most hopeful film I've ever seen. This man is not only a national hero, he is an hero for the whole world. Made me cry, but gave me hope. Sir David, your life works will be remembered with the likes of Einstein and Newton someday, you are just as big a genius in your field as they were in their own fields. You are inspiring me to become a better version of myself. Film of the year.

I've always known the message this film pushes, I've known its the most crucial thing that currently or has ever existed, I know that people are eager to enable it to happen, but I also know at this rate it never will.

Watching this made me cry. Not because it enlightened me to the reality of the issue but because it reminded me of the barbaric reality that is humanity. I want more than anything in the world for people to work solely on this issue to come as close to a solution as possible, and I Know writing this won't change anything. I'm not writing it for you. I'm writing it for me. From here forward I will be working to become a environmental engineer to perhaps come closer to the solution. and I know I'm just one person but as David Attenborough has demonstrated, as he has influenced me, it only takes one person to change the way another preserves or interacts with the environment creating a chain reaction that might just save what enables not only humans but EVERYTHING to exist.

I just returned from the premiere of David Attenborough: A Life on Our Planet, a documentary in which the man himself talks about how he witnessed many drastic changes that happened in our world during a single lifetime. As I was watching it, I often felt the need to look away, even though I knew that I would be closing my eyes to the harsh truth of our planet's decay if I did. My advice? Do not look away from this documentary for a second. It will show you seemingly irreversible damage done to this earth, but give you specific hope that'll make sure not all will be lost. It will show you that everything that has been destroyed can be rebuilt. My personal favorite part is where he shows us that this is not about saving our planet: it's about saving ourselves. Because if humanity perishes due to its own errors, life will start anew anyway. It's all about the legacy we leave behind that will determine whether our species becomes extinct... or gets to live another century to see the world rise from the ashes we created.

All in all, a convincing documentary, not with necessarily lots of new visual content, but rather an incredibly moving, personal story beautifully tied together with video footage and fantastic music.

Such a legend and he tells his story (and our story) with breathtaking honesty.

We must transition to sustainable energy, raise the global living standard and we must stop our consumption of meat.

It is that simple and concrete.