LIFE

My 4 yr old and 6 yr old absolutely love this!!!!! The narration coupled with the video is visually arresting. What I love is that my kids have learnt about new species of animals and their habitat which no one book will be able to teach them. They have watched it a zillion times which is a testament to the mind boggling documentary. As a parent I am happy to allow them this " watch TV" cries.Hats off to David Attenborough!!!!

A real life intimate view to all inaccessible points for common people. I couldn't imagine to reach such places ever in my life and all the close up views are just in front of me in seconds. I am just over satisfied with the life threatening efforts of the people in the background of the project. I have recommend the programme for all common people to see and know our near and far world nad just be surprised. A spectacular presentation of real life in macro and wide view.

Life in all its aspects

Nice collection of 4 discs. The content is insects ;fish;birds;hunters etc. But its very effective and after starting watching one can't leave it unwatched. Thanks Amazon for giving such beautiful Diwali gift for my daughters. Its for all age person from child to grand parents. Everybody will definitely enjoy it. Its really value for money.

It's very difficult to describe "Life" because nothing is precious than knowledge. I'm lucky that I have most of the collections of BBC Earth series i.e., Planet Earth, Life and Human Planet. Please go for these and find a new meaning of life.I have no right to tell anything about the outstanding services of Amazon, only to say WOW!

Great gift for my nieces around 10yrs. Thy enjoyed it thoroughly. Since then anytime I have to gift a little kid, this is one of top 5 choices along with some books. Excellent photography and one can't beat the narration by David Attenborough. Must buy.

And so we haven't been able to watch it much - she won't allow us, because she hates to see all those beautifully captured creatures die, with their death described so eloquently.One day, she'll get over it, and then we'll watch it together. She loves life too much to bear its end.

This DVD is a must in the Collector's Archives..you and your family will get immersed in watching every bit of the visually, painstakingly shot over 3 years covering most of the world's location and memorable series to be watched again..again. thanx

A superb Blu Ray release from the BBC. Colours are natural looking, vibrant but easy on the eye, (in Planet Earth II some of the colours were so bright they were unnaturally bright.) Detail here is sharp the image is crisp and even the underwater photography and the darker sequences are very impressive in terms of clarity.The Blu Ray comes with 1080p resolution, Aspect ratio: 1.78:1 and audio DTS-HD HR 5.1. The series was able to take advantage of the latest camera stabilization technology while filming from helicopters and planes, the results are some sublime overhead and establishing shoots. My favourite comes from the insect episode where the camera starts off looking downwards at a waterfall before smoothly panning up to reveal a lake, beyond that a forest and beyond that again a large mountain in the distance with not a soul in sight.By 2009 HD digital cameras were in full use by the BBC's natural history unit, having previously been used on Planet Earth (2006) and Life in Cold Blood (2008), no longer 480p but now 1080p.The plant episode is one of my favourites with it's expert use of time lapse photography, it feels like an updated Private Life of Plants. The beautiful winter photography in this episode is also a stand out feature. The episode also has more naration and content than the others too its of couse more difficult to tell a story in just pictures even with the over abudance of timelapse photography the only footage that seems to play in real time seem to be the overhead establishing ones. The sound is also crisp and clean, whether it's a trickle of water, a rustling leaf, insect noise or an animal call. The narration from David Attenborough is also distinct, intelligible and is never muffled by the score.On the critical side some of the most recent releases from the BBC natural history unit feature slightly less factual content, the programme seems more interested in trying to wow you with it's imagery and music than trying to educate the viewer. Earlier series tended to be drier, with more detailed narration. Life just about gets away with it's approach, the content is still very informative, there isn't so much attempt to build up drama or humour as later series would do. During the primates episode the narration did border on stating the obvious too, not trusting the audience to grasp finer points but spelling it all out for them. Attenborough tells us 3 times that the Japanese macaques monkeys in the hot spring exclude other monkeys, it slightly labours the point here. Show don't tell please. These scenes already featured anyway in Life on Earth (1979) so we're not even being shown anything new.The series is pure eye candy in terms of showing off your HD/UHD TV. Even when using minature cameras the image still retains it's high quality. It's a definite uptick in picture quality over Planet Earth and even all these years later it really holds up from that point of view.The smoothness of the shots often seems to have been achieved partly by running the camera across a dolly using a motor.Another stand out episode is the insects with frogs leaping in slow motion to catch insects to the sound of violin strings and soft drums.The soundtrack is orchestral having moved away from the more symphonic sound often used in the 1980s and 1990s. Some of the cinematography of the butterflies in Mexico is sublime as is the time lapse photography of changing skies. We also learn a great deal too in this episode about insect camouflage, armour and acid. 85,000 species of fly. It's worth reflecting too on how critically threatened much of this is by global warming and overpopulation. Behind the scenes looking at this episode is also well worth a look. commercial drones for photography weren't really around back in 2009, very different to today. For one shot the camera had to glide along a wire in order to travel with the butterflies. Seventeen takes were done after 3 days of prep for what probably amounted to 5 seconds of footage. These people are trying so hard to get the right result for the viewer, you have to applaud the results. Unofficial sources put the budget of this programme at around £10 million, it's not just the production where the money was spend I'd bet but also the post production, All the footage looks like it's been extensively colour corrected to ensure everything looks smooth and matches up with the previous image.In a few of the sequences in the Mammals episode footage of a lower quality is used at points.Some shots are also digitally manipulated e.g. woodland time lapse photography, the series is honest enough to say so.The naration and its delivery is very dramatic'.....most predatory of the dolphin family.....KILLER WHALES!'Blue Planet and Trials of Life has already shown orcas hunting seal pubs, again again again. Though the BBC go back and do it again instead of finding new animal and behaviour to film.In terms of locations, only one place in Europe was used, none in Middle East, Africa is used a lot, as is North and South America along with Japan. The series does also lack an overall theme unlike the Trials of Life, it's more here's a bird in the jungle, 90 second later, here's one in a forest, here's one in a lake....cut cut cut. Some of the sound effects inserted in are also a bit silly. Apparently plants making a woshing sound like when climbing up a tree.

If you've got a 4K tv you'll know about the dvd thang, they look pale and blurry, and if you really love a film or documentary you HAVE to get a Blu-ray version. I'm so glad I got this as it looks much crisper and more detailed than my dvd version, it is, of course, an essential purchase anyway - stunning wildlife footage narrated by the Greatest Living Englishman (although it should be noted that it pulls no punches when it comes to the flip-side of the series title, so probably not for the squeamish on occasions) but there's an added extra I've not seen on any other BBC Blu-ray (provided by 2 Entertain) in the form of a High Definition Setup menu; this is quite excellent with a narrative guide and a plethora of test screens, it even takes you through surround setup and so forth, I think it'd be almost worth the asking price for this feature alone.Highly recommended.

Having watched Sir David's earliest documentaries, the thing that strikes me most about the 21st century output is the accelerating brevity of the Series and the episodes, neither of which can be altogether plausibly attributed to his increasing frailty! Though the music now commissioned is stunning and utterly perfect and beautiful (the young Elizabeth Parker's well-intentioned but sonically hideous electronic post-Stockhausen caterwaulings make the early stuff very difficult to enjoy) the actual footage culled from years of footage we'll never get to see is cursory, and not helped by 20% of the programme being devoted to The Making Of... with repetitive footage, best put on disc as extras! The latest, AFRICA, is definitely in "Oh, Dear: poor Grandad - what have they done with him" territory.By contrast THE LIVING PLANET strikes me as the best nature documentary series of all time: time being the operative word. Time to linger on the subject. Time to show a real series! We've gone from LIFE ON EARTH's 13 1 hour, totally original episodes to AFRICA's 5 43 minute, parson's egg combining stunning, ground-breaking film with rather blatant recycling of old material.As for LIFE: basically undeniably a must-have item, it does contain the second most gruesome of Sir David's subject matters (2nd only to the nightmarish gray whale episode on BLUE PLANET). Having watched the komodo sequence once, I cannot bring myself to watch it again! Give me an honest tyrannosaur any day.It is reviewed as edited from 1000s of hours of film, which rather proves my main objection to the brevity and the trivial broadcast time allotted!

This outstanding Documentary contains the proof, that we are not the only Intelligent Creatures on Earth. All Life has its own Intelligence ( since the hudge till the tinniest Creature ) and a surprising capacity to develop means of adaptability to confront the dramatic changes of Earth's Monumental Environment.40% of Individuals we see here ( absolutely amazing Creatures ) were completly unknown. Among those we already know we can observe the learning of new skills in order to meet challenges. True lessons of Survival, like Polar Bears in uncommon habitats: not digging the ice in search of Seals but on dry land after swimming several miles in search of any food. Close encounters like we've never seen before, of isolated Males and entire families of Polar Bear mothers and youngsters feeding on a carcass. Adding to this, a community of Dolphins in Florida with a new strategy to catch fish in very low waters, and a group of three male Cheetah brothers in Kenya, hunting a huge prey the same way Lionesses do!Great scenes of devotion: a worry Bull Frog father taking care and saving from death an big pool of babies. Ingenious: Flying Fish constructing a huge nest on an Ocean's lost Palm Tree. Beauty: a Grebe's courtship ceremony, starting with a serious of graceful duets and ending with a breathtaking exhibition of Ballet over waters!Insects, Birds and Plants are also outstanding Docs with unbelievable moments! Monkeys Doc was another surprise! When you think you have already seen everything about them, you're wrong.Imagine a very cold Winter. It's snowing outside. An elegant SPA in a confortable Hotel. There's a rule: you have to own a specific ID and the Hotel porter is asking for it. If you're wealthy and well-born you are welcome, though if you're not, you have to stay outside in the cold. This is the behavior of a particular Monkey Society in Japan, as you see very similar to our Societies! Even the gestures and facial expressions of those Animals sharing that private, idyllic and luxurious habitat are exceptional! They simply look like us!There's no doubt a considerable Intelligence here not to speak about the powerful Instinct.At last, the filmmaking I was expecting for years! Two exceptional scenes and impressive moments of Jurassic: Komodo Dragon ( Varanus Komodoensis ), the biggest and most dangerous Lizard on Earth in a hell of a fight and a hell of a hunt in its Natural Habitat. I've already seen other Docs about this ugly Beast but nothing comparable. This scary Animal owns three lethal weapons: the bite, the claws and that powerful tale. Although it looks like heavy and slow, it runs faster than you! When you observe it you have no doubt, you are looking at the last living Dinosaur on Earth!This filmmaking was carefully done and I already knew by books how it should be. Even so I was taken by surprise in the chasing scene and have to tell you it's not a good thing to look at! Even both Photographer who had to do the job, and watch for a week long the details we fortunately don't see, didn't hide their distress! I think we are already prepared for that quick feline's bite, but not for this! An exasperating moment, though one of the best captures in the Wild!What more about this Project? It is a perfect extension of Attenborough's other great Docs as Life of Mammals, Life of Birds, Life of Plants and In Cold Blood, with the most fantastic new Creatures pictured in tinniest detail.Not just one more Series about Nature and Wild Life but one more fantastic BBC Natural History Unit research, from the makers of Planet Earth, with the cooperation of Air Force Navy and McMurdo Polar Research Station in Antarctica, and the always charismatic presence of Sir David Attenborough who continues to be the Top One, in the difficult Art of Narration and Presentation.The most perfect Camera and Soundtrack.Long live High Technology and Human Brain! Breathtaking making of a 60 second specific shot ( Plants Doc ), Practically all done in Studio! Astonishing!Definitely Not to Miss...

The quality of this blu ray is absolutely outstanding!The quality of the series itself is beyond question - the vast array of animals covered, and with it their obscure behaviours that we couldn't have imagined, makes this series so good. There is a vast amount of detail in every episode, all presented in David Attenborough's inimitable style.The quality of the blu ray presentation itself is a benchmark by which others should be judged; whether it is the vibrant, rich colours of the rainforest's chameleons, the detail on the eyeballs of a preying mantis, or a shot of the Antarctic in all of its glory - every scene looks remarkable.The sound is also outstanding, particularly on surround sound. When there is an underwater shot of fish or whales, every bubble and splash can be heard. When a lizard bites into an insect there is a distinctive, sickening crunch. And when a tarantula is moving in on it's prey, the bristling of the hairs on its legs can be heard clearly. All the while, bird songs and various other wildlife noises can be heard clearly on the other speakers.All in all, this is the best nature documentary I have ever watched, and the best blu ray I have ever experienced. Buy this now and you won't be disappointed!