Wings of Life is the most recent presentation of documentaries by Disneynature. Narrated by Meryl Streep, Wings of Life is a “look at butterflies, hummingbirds, bees, bats and flowers is a celebration of life” It takes the viewer on a trip around the globe both far and near on this beautiful and colorful journey.
Picture and Sound:
Visually, Wings of Life was absolutely beautiful. The colors captured were absolutely stunning. The moments grabbed at such a high rate of speed and then slowed down so we can actually see some of them were amazing (for example seeing how a hummingbird twists around as it flies… incredible!). Most of this movie was shot very close up and with smaller creatures so the fact that this movie maintained its clarity and depth was wonderful. The sound wasn’t quite as impressive. It lacked some of the depth of other Disneynature films. It didn’t really immerse in the same way. Meryl Streep as a narrator was everything you would hope it would be but the surrounding sound effects just didn’t match up. In fact, they were borderline generic.
Bonus Features:
There really weren’t bonus features included with Wings of Life. There was a Sneak Peek of Disneynature Bears that looks like it will be a lot of fun but really, this is just a preview.
Final Thoughts:
Wings of Life was a movie that once again showcases the abilities of the Disneynature team to go out into the world and get some amazing footage. The description for this movie says it is a look at “butterflies, hummingbirds, bees, bats and flowers.” Really it is a look at the flowers and how the other four relate to them, with Meryl Streep actually narrating from the perspective of the flower. There were some awkward phrasings in her narrating from this perspective. It also was hard to really be drawn in and feel compassion for every flower in the world in the same way that you could fall in love with Oscar in Chimpanzee. All that being said, this wasn’t my favorite Disneynature film that has been made. It’s pretty. It’s educational. Just not quite as edutaining as some other Disneynature films. I’m looking forward to the next one and this one will probably just sit on the shelf.
Here is a look at Disneynature’s Bears:
