Wholphin

From the stunning eight-minute opening shot of to the remarkable documentation of China’s Three Gorges dam, you are overwhelmed by MANUFACTURED LANDSCAPES (2007). Partly by the size and space of the landscapes, but mostly by the incredible beauty of the images, their composition and color, only to be crushed by the content: a luscious world of destruction.

You can enjoy this vibrant doc even if you are not riding the current wave of environmental danger films. See the environment – see all of us run. If Al Gore makes you feel like you need more visual aids, or if you feel you need words with KOYAANISQATSI, then this is the perfect companion film for the trilogy.

Ultimately LANDSCAPES is the portrait of one man’s voyage, following celebrated still photographer Edward Burtynsky on a tour of Asia taking photos. Burtynsky takes large format stills of industrial landscapes – factory workers lined up to infinity, giant ships eviscerated, massive recycling dumps, expansive strip mines. The goal is to portray human’s relationship to nature in our pursuit of progress. His images are striking and picturesque, leaving the viewer on their own to comprehend the negative global ramifications within.

Director Jennifer Baichwal makes impressive choices. The film perfectly balances the images of Burtynsky and talented cinematographer/creative consultant Peter Mettler, an acoomplished filmmaker and imagemaker on his own. Burtynsky presents the expanse and philosophy, and the filmmakers examine the tiny parts. And when Burtynsky speaks, he doesn’t celebrate nor condemn, but explores who we are in relation to our planet. We need things from the environment to survive, and that is damaging the world.

DVD has tons of extras, additional scenes, commentary and interviews with Baichwal, Burtynsky and Mettler, and a great photo gallery with commentary. Released by Zeitgeist Video, available now for $29.99.