What is life? At its most basic level, a technical definition could be that it is the state of being alive at a cellular level or greater. And yet, we live on a world teeming with life in such abundance and diversity of form that it is so much more than that. Ultimately, I think that is what the most recent production from the BBC's Natural History Unit is about.
Life was four years in the making and comes from the producers of Planet Earth and The Blue Planet. It takes us on another amazing journey around the world, capturing on film the dazzling diversity of life Earth is blessed to have. As with their previous productions, these filmmakers have provided us with the shock and awe of the natural world and show us things we may never see otherwise.
With some shots in real time and others slow motion, we get to see creatures, alone and in groups, doing what they do best — surviving and perpetuating their species. From the tale of the gobie fish in Hawaii climbing waterfalls to spawn in perfect pools at the top of rocky cliffs to flying fish to the cy
cle of hunter and hunted played out in countless environments each day, we are presented with crystal clear imagery that mesmerizes with almost every frame.
Originally broadcast in England at the end of 2009 (this version is the one that aired in the US in 2010), the 10 episodes of Life each focus on a unique aspect of living organisms on Earth.
The series starts with the "Challenges of Life" where the filmmakers present examples of how plants, animals, and insects manage to find enough food to eat and find ways to reproduce to ensure the continuation of their kind. Amazing footage of what a small mother strawberry poison dart frog does to keep her tadpoles safe in the rainforest canopy and the Pacific giant octopus sacrificing herself so that her children may survive show the lengths to which some creatures will go to protect and care for their young.
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