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Category:    Home > Reviews > Documentary > Equestrian > Nature - Horses (TV)

Nature – Horses

 

Picture: C+     Sound: B-     Extras: D     Episodes: B

 

 

Recently, Robin Wood pontificated in an extended chapter of his second edition of Hollywood - From Vietnam To Reagan… and Beyond (2003, reviewed elsewhere on this site) about her success and how interesting seemingly benign material she chooses to be involved with is.  He is onto something.  She is beautiful and has a great sense of joy about her, but she is also for real and that is why she continues to be the number one female box office star in the world.

 

In another more explicit and outstanding example of this, here she is as the host, narrator, and inadvertent star of Wild Horses of Mongolia, an outstanding installment of the legendary PBS series Nature.  Because our media is so saturated with garbage, big stars like this are wisely cautious to media unless absolutely necessary or for something special.  This was something very special for Roberts to do and it works spectacularly well.

 

We learn about the horses, as well as the people.  Mongolia was under Communist rule (read oppression) for decades, and the portrait of the land, its people, and these beautiful horses is a stunner.  They have survived and thrived.  Roberts is vulnerable and disarming throughout.  I had great respect for her before hand, now I have a whole new reason to feel good about what I thought in the first place.

 

A second show, Horse and Rider, may be more down to earth but is not much less interesting.  It talks thoroughly about how people who ride horses become integrated with them, and this goes beyond just sitting on one and going.  They are not cars; they are great animals with more intelligence than the size of their brains traditionally allowed them to be associated with.

 

Both episodes are presented in 1.78 X 1 letterboxing, though some credits are full screen.  They are in color and likely shot in film, then transferred to High Definition.  This is a second generation transfer that is not bad.  The Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo demonstrates nice Pro Logic surrounds.  There are no extras.

 

It is noted that Nature is the longest running series on natural history on TV.  With forerunners like Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom, that makes sense.  Those shows helped bring the idea of nature on TV to life.  This series fulfills that promise, as several networks have arrived since totally devoted to the subject one way or another.  Now that’s quality television!

 

 

-   Nicholas Sheffo


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