Kidzworld saw A Beautiful Planet, an eye-popping IMAX film narrated by Jennifer Lawrence. Is it worth a trip to the cineplex for a glimpse of space station life and heavenly views in HD?
By: Lynn Barker
Watching A Beautiful Planet, we can imagine getting up every morning and looking out our window to see complete continents, hurricanes and turquoise Caribbean waters far below. Ah, to be an astronaut on the International Space Station!
Humungous hurricaneCourtesy of IMAX
Jennifer Narrates
Over beautiful views of our homeworld, Jennifer Lawrence tells us facts about our Milky Way galaxy and how tiny and unique we are in such vastness. Our sun is average but Earth is a waterworld and one we need to protect.
Jennifer Lawrence works on narrationCourtesy of IMAX
The Crew Arrives
Three astronauts arrive for a six month stay on the station to study microgravity and do bio-medical research. They are Italian, Russian and American. Sixteen countries helped build the station for research, training and as an observatory and, up there, we all get along. They arrive in a Russian spacecraft and the outgoing crew hugs the new one.
Astronauts set up a shot on the stationCourtesy of IMAX
One of the crewsCourtesy of IMAX
View from the “Window”
From a large, round observation window or “cupola”, you can see the Earth spread out below both night and day and the astronauts shoot the footage with IMAX cameras they’ve been trained to use. Jennifer tells us facts about each group of people in each country on Earth below. For example the Maori from New Zealand and Incas in the Andes etc. We see deserts and great lakes and view asteroid impacts that leave scars, active volcanoes, etc. Several of the astronauts give us their reactions to what they are seeing and experiencing.
Shooting out the cupola windowCourtesy of IMAX
The Supply Ship Arrives!
We learn that several private companies are rocketing supplies up to the station. A ship arrives and it looks like a choreographed dance as supplies are unloaded by floating astronauts. There is a search for a missing wrench. Every one sleeps while floating.
Ready for a float napCourtesy of IMAX
Space Walk
Astronauts Terry Virts and Mission Commander Barry “Butch” Wilmore are suited up and go outside the station for observation and repairs. Butch takes his famous “selfie” from space and on going back inside, has to have Italian astronaut Samantha Christoferetti jump up and down on him to get his tight space suit off. Funny.
Commander Wilmore learns the IMAX cameraCourtesy of IMAX
Daily Life
Astronauts cut each other’s hair, celebrate Christmas, use strange equipment to exercise, play bagpipes, make espresso coffee, juggle for fun, grow lettuce, corral escaping fruit and welcome a new crew as the current one leaves.
Juggling runaway fruit!Courtesy of IMAX
Exercising on the stationCourtesy of IMAX
Our Planet and its Future
Jennifer again narrates as we see gorgeous and sometimes sad views of Earth and what Mankind has caused there; disappearing rainforests, melting polar ice, animals losing habitats, air and sea pollution etc. We are told of progress; rivers cleaned up, etc. We CAN stop this. We learn about Mars, a planet that once had water. Are we going to end up like that? We should “work like a crew, not just passengers on Earth”. If we can travel faster than light one day, we can visit other star systems and find planets that can support our kind of life. We have even found one or two with our telescopes. Time to cooperate for our planet and our future.
Turquoise watersCourtesy of IMAX
A Beautiful Planet Trailer
Wrapping Up
Kidzworld saw A Beautiful Planet early and only on our desk computer screen and it was amazing. On a big IMAX screen you would feel like you are up in space! Astronauts from several countries were trained to use new IMAX cameras to not only shoot some of their sometimes silly, often serious daily activities on the space station but to get unique HD footage of our Earth from pole to pole, night and day and it is breath-taking. There is some great humor in the film as well as the crews celebrate a no-gravity Christmas, one juggles and another struggles to get a Commander out of his too-tight spacesuit!
Working in spaceCourtesy of IMAX
There is a strong environmental message in the film and whether you personally hope to go into space someday or not, as a citizen of planet Earth, you owe it to yourself to get a high-flying view of our world. Under a competent narration by actress Jennifer Lawrence, you will learn a lot about our planet and also get a real feel for what it is like to live and work in space. Nothing negative here, we go five stars.
A Beautiful Planet Movie Rating:
A Beautiful Planet PosterCourtesy of IMAX
A Beautiful Planet is in theaters Friday!
Have Your Say
Are you doing all you can to protect and aid our planet? Do you want to travel to other worlds someday? Leave a comment below.
