THIS FILM IS FOR THE BIRDS AND ME
This film is a delightful and refreshing break from the typical Hollywood fare. It introduced me to a lovely sport and hobby.
shareI agree, Hollywood has been recycling old concepts over and over. They also seem to be injecting their films with teenage hormones. I cannot stand most of the film that are coming out. This film is a breath of fresh air for me.
shareWell, I'm a hard core, passionate birder, and from my perspective, this film is crap. It completely misses the nature of real birders, and birding. What a terrible failure.
shareIt misses because it tries to show a more entertaining look. If they showed it in the real way most people would be bored. It's a Hollywood film. You should watch the documentaries instead if you want the real deal like "Birders: The Central Park Effect". That was great and I'm sure you saw that. I see your point but I doubt they could have kept the audience entertained any other way. Just my opinion. Not trying to knock yours.
shareI agree with OP...it introduced me to a world I had no idea about. I found myself thinking "do people really do this?" throughout the movie. Two thumbs up for that because I'm sick of sitting through remakes or movies with the same plot but different characters.
shareHey Chas437, don't you agree thought that having people write in and say that this movie introduced them to a whole culture and sport that they did not know about before is a good thing? I mean, you may not agree with how birding is portrayed, but that the film is reaching the non birding audience out there is nice to hear.
Also, did you read the reviews by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology? I found it kind of interesting because they caught so much stuff that I would have missed - obscure references to birding lore and history, etc. I think they were flattered.
I can't really argue with your point of view - I mean, I would really wish a movie about birding to be more like "Winged Migration" or something where you can sort of connect emotionally with the birds as they go about their lives. They become almost human and you feel for them. That is the total opposite of the listing mentality where they are just a number.
But in the absence of any movie like that, I will take this one. Yes, the competitive and compulsive aspects do take center stage, but there is enough outdoor footage and scenery shots etc to show you that birders ALSO enjoy nature and wildlife for their own sake. These guys are not out there racing cars, they are enjoying and respecting nature. I think that comes through in the movie, and largely why I think it is positive for our hobby. Also, note that at the end of the movie, the competitiveness is de-emphasized. Bostick wins, but everyone goes home happy. I think that means they all enjoyed what they did regardless of whether or not they won or not, and that respect for each other trumped their competitive instincts
I did not expect to like this movie, but I was pleasantly surprised. The movie has a lot of heart and it introduced me to a new hobby. I've already picked up books, binocs and been birding locally twice in Minneapolis parks at bird sanctuary's. I love that it gives me an excuse to re-visit all the national parks and a new way to appreciate nature. Never thought I'd do anything like "birding" but this movie touched a nerve, what more can you ask for from a movie?
Yeah, I agree its nice to have a major film that is about our very esoteric hobby. A few have posted here that, they have become interested in birding as reult of the film. I've always thought of birding as alot of fun, and that more people would do it, if they knew how much fun it can be. Its also a fairly inexpensive hobby.
Its interseting that the film has all these obscure refernces to birding lore and history, yet the screenplay isn't very well written. But I'm not going to argue the merits of the film. It certainly got mixed reviews in the birding community.
BTW, HBO produced a documentary recently which IS for birders. It called "The Central Park Effect", if you don't have HBO, you may have to wait a few months for the DVD. Its an excellent look at birds and birders, as it documents the fallout of migrant songbirds into Central Park during migration. As a green strip in an otherwise barren landscape, Central Park is an excellent migrant trap. They seem to get about every eastern lardbird as well as some waterfowl. It got great bird footage. It also goes into why people bird quite a bit.
I do want to see the movie about the Central Park effect -
and I agree that the screenplay is not well written. Sadly, few screenplays are these days. And when a screenplay is not good, IMHO you might as well just substitute a lot of good music and great photography.
Nix the scenes in the corporate headquarters especially, and a lot of the other subplot stuff.