Human

Very broad and deep viewing.

The slow panning scenes and atmospheric music deliver a sublime high definition experience complimented and counterbalanced by short intimate accounts of very personal stories mostly about the individuals themselves and their sometimes incredible lives and at times harrowing experiences. So much so I had to pause for a break from the emotional intensity of some of the toughest stories.

There are three volumes/films and I have only watched most of the way through the first so far. I wonder if the on-screen text is played/available in other languages because I saw them in English on Google Play and the multitude people telling their stories are truly drawn from all walks of life and corners of the world.

A marvelous way to expand your view of humanity.

""I am poor. I will now define poverty. What is poverty to me? It's when I have to go to school but can not go. When I need to eat, but I can not. When I need to sleep, but I can not. When my wife and children suffer. I do not have the intellectual level needed to get out of this situation. neither I nor my family. I feel really poor in body and mind. And you rich, who are listening to me, what you have to say about their wealth?""

Presented in 3 Volumes of 1 hour and a half duration each, HUMAN speaks about LOVE in the purest sense of the word; talks about the machismo and homophobia still very present in the world of wars and conflicts, about revenge and forgiveness, about the humiliating poverty of many and indifferent wealth of the few. It also talks about how the current system is unfair and how the work for most people is exhausting, stressful and unhappy, making them spend his life in exchange for a money can buy everything but quality of life or True Love.

HUMAN makes it clear how the violence against others and contempt for the less fortunate, regardless for what reasons are, it's something completely useless and unnecessary. Because in every face and all eyes, be they rich or poor, black or white, victims or criminals, straight or gay, old or children, we see that all these people are human-beings, each with its peculiarities, cultures and different stories, yes, but human-beings above all.

This Documentary makes us look inside ourselves and make the following questions:

Why do I keep killing me to work for a lifetime in a job that makes me more harm than good, just to accumulate the maximum of goods I can, when I die I will not take anything with me? Why do we treat each other so badly? Why do we insist on seeing the other as a threat, an enemy, not a creature to be understood, heard and respected? Why do we insist we find ourselves higher or worse than others?

If all - or at least most - do these simple questions and begin to see in every known and unknown face a Being-Human, surely the world would not this place so full of poverty, inequality and conflict.

This film is a definite masterpiece that can surely bring some pretty deep feelings in everyone's mind. Even tough I am not fully competent of understanding each and every one of those feelings I did learn quite a valuable lesson: Individually we are different but there is only one whole we can make and that is humanity itself. The movie consists of stories, little life stories that through their simplicity altogether with the atmosphere created by the people themselves make a great place to understand what life really is and how life differs from one person to another. It really forms an opinion on every single aspect of life like: poverty, love, feelings and death. The overall quality of the movie is amazing, not only by how the general structure is build but also from an emotional perspective. Moreover, watching each and every one of those people telling their stories gives you an opportunity to catch a glimpse in their life. Combining that with the wonderful collection of music and sceneries you are persuaded to endorse the idea of life thriving everywhere and in every condition. The stories are said through an interview form, the focus being strictly on the teller. The black background and the silence that surrounds gives a very deep view in those people lives, but here is where Yann Arthus- Bertrand's genius comes on. He makes us see and understand those ideas right from the people' s mind and perspective. To sum up, I can definitely recommend this documentary to absolutely anyone who wants to take a moment and enjoy the vastness of life and world. One small detail I want to say is that I have seen the three part version which in my opinion is very suitable to many people because it give you time to understand each one very easily.

This is an inspired review. After stumbling across a short clip and being lead to the entire production on YouTube, I feel I've been given a tremendous gift. What has been presented for us is a clear window into the souls of those we live with but never normally see.

The chosen angle of people being shown creates a personal feel that gave me a feeling that I was being spoken to. Topics were given eclectic voices, articulated in ways that will forever keep my eyes open wide to the vastness of human expression. Cleverly shot, contemplative scenery of both nature and humanity were spliced at intervals allowed for a well paced interchange and time to reflect.

The music wonderfully complements the atmosphere being created. It aids contemplation and harmonises the stories with the scenery.

The high-definition format adds to the feeling of immersion, seamlessly moving me from one story to the next. I was reminded by the work of Ron Fricke with the documentary 'Samsara' which uses a similar approach.

This, however, gives a poetic voice to humans' narration of life experience that adds another dimension to this piece.

'Human' felt like an education that I wish I had received in my formative years. But I am thankful for it now and I hope it will take you on a journey similar to the one I have taken, the journey of being 'Human'.

human....

I know that my writing ( I am from Brazil) here is awful, but still I have to speak about this unique film. Before seeing it was easy to judge someone , it was easy to define love, fear, terror.... I thought that feeling something very deep in a movie was almost impossible, always artificial ... After watching "humans", I understand the complexity of what is to be a human, the beauty of what is love , I was moved like never before seeing a father talking about his son... Something very deep inside me has changed after watching this movie, something that is now open, and that is my view on the others, judging someone, for me now, is as simple as understanding love...

Thank you for showing me what being a human is all about...