Chimpanzee

After taking my husband to see Chimpanzee last night (as I have no school age kids to drag) I have to give it two bananas up! We both loved it. What a refreshing change to see a film that almost any age could see together and have a great discussion afterward.

Gorgeously filmed and just the right length to keep smaller ones from getting bored, I was amazed at the footage that the filmmakers got of these chimps. I am one of those who has trouble leaving the primate area of the zoo and it does make you marvel at their similarities with humans.

You'll feel like you just went on a trip to the rain forest of Africa, and I can't imagine a child or teen not liking this. Or an adult for that matter.

This is the second nature documentary from Disney that I've seen, and like the other one I saw, it's a mixed bag. On the positive side, it is very well photographed, with some spectacular shots (especially on Blu- ray). It's also not boring, and there are some interesting revelations on the lives of chimpanzees and what they have to go through.

Unfortunately, at the same time this documentary has some serious flaws. Most obvious is the narration by Tim Allen, which is often very annoying and jokey. I realize that they were trying to attract kids, but I think Disney could have found a narrator that would appeal to both kids and their parents (and written better things to say.) Also, the events that we get to see sometimes come across like they were concocted in the editing room. It was not a surprise when I read other user comments here after watching the movie that gave evidence that this documentary wasn't always telling the truth as to what actually happened.

There is some good stuff here, but adults will probably have some issues with "Chimpanzee" all the same. So it's best to show it to your kids while you are out of the room doing something else.

What can really be said about this movie.... Its a fantastic documentary, and unlike other wildlife documentary's its not overly sad or graphic, so parents can bring their kids.

The shots and views of the chimps and the rain forest, are absolutely amazing. All aspects of the lives of chimpanzees are shown, even the not so glamorous ones. However the filmmakers show the harshness of the lives of chimps while appealing to all ages, and not sacrificing content. For example: in one of the few scenes at can be perceived as violent, an obscured view of the chimps is shown, not enough to mask their actions, but enough to make it tasteful.

Tim Allen does a fantastic job of narrating, being both funny and informative. He even makes a throw back joke or two.

This film is inspiring, fun, and informative. Its fun for the whole family, and I am not just saying that. I left the theater thinking how alike humans and chimpanzees are, and would recommend this movie to any animal lover.

I work as a wildlife cameraman - but (sadly) was not involved in this film. When I watched it I realised a new bench mark has been set for these wildlife feature movies. Anyone who has worked in West Africa will agree it is one of the toughest habitats to film in - and chimps can be one of the hardest animals to follow. With that in mind, the achievement of getting a unique true story like this - one that brings us so close to the animals in every way - is quite remarkable. I don't want to put in spoilers, but the story is heartwarming and the characters so strong that you could almost believe this was animated - but it is much better than that. This is true life. A beautiful movie!

The most striking feature I noticed while watching this film was the resemblance of these creatures to my neighbors. It's incredible how similar to us they are!

Granted, Doña Carmen and Don José don't go as far as to deflea each other while carrying on a casual conversation on a sidewalk, but the similarities in body gestures and specially when persistently looking at the camera lens (it happened several times, whether intentionally or not) and we could see overwhelmingly human eyes looking at us, can be quite disturbing.

Impeccable photography with so many close ups that one wonders constantly at how they had managed to take those shots without disturbing the animals. I'm sure Disney has the most sophisticated equipment in the World in order to present such splendipherous depth of lenses and superb sharpness all the time, even from long distances, but even so, chimpanzees have a very sensitive sense of smell and I'm sure they could detect human presence from afar, but apparently it left them unconcerned and they proceeded naturally with their daily chores.

The forest, breathtaking, specially from the air, and the lushness of all that green carpet we see below seems to go forever on behind those far away mountains; when the camera goes down to ground level it's disconcerting to notice how very little sunlight reaches these animals.

Since it was a Disney film, obviously thought out for children, the notorious lack of restrain among monkeys and chimps when it comes to bodily functions, including everything related to sex, which is so habitual to see in zoos in broad daylight, here there is no trace whatsoever of it, like in those old Doris Day films, where everything was squeaky clean.

A good film for Eco-friendly fans.

P.S.: I gave it a 9 because of the titanic efforts of the whole crew and the tenacity they put into the project, working under such harsh and probably dangerous conditions.