Movielogr

Rating: 8 stars

Tags

siskel film center moviepass Africa chimpanzee photographer research

All movies seen on 01/19/2018

View on: IMDb | TMDb

Jane (2017)

Directed by Brett Morgen

Documentary | Biography

Overview

Drawing from never-before-seen footage that has been tucked away in the National Geographic archives, director Brett Morgen tells the story of Jane Goodall, a woman whose chimpanzee research revolutionized our understanding of the natural world.

Length 90 minutes

Actors

Jane Goodall | Hugo van Lawick | Hugo Eric Louis van Lawick

Viewing History (seen 1 time)

Viewing Notes

Seeing Jane Goodall speak years ago in Portland was one the best speeches I’ve witnessed. Viewing this movie really brought that back into the front of my memory and had me tearing up during the first chapter / third of this documentary. What Jane Goodall did is nothing short of miraculous. I’m not one to have idols but if I did she would be one. So goddamn inspiring in so many ways.

This doc is essentially rediscovered found footage from 2014 that was shot during the 60s when Goodall first went to Africa to study the chimps and what that was like and how challenging it was. So from this “lost” footage the filmmakers had to construct a narrative, which becomes the story of Goodall’s life from childhood to present day. Half of this works extremely well. The other half is typical biography stuff that is filler to round out her story. The average rating between these is 8/10. I’d prefer to watch more of her time with the chimps and all of the research.

Comments