Planet Earth Limited Edition Blu-ray (US)

Planet Earth Limited Edition Blu-ray (US)

The Complete Series | Limited Edition

BBC | 2006 | 538 min | Not rated | Oct 04, 2011

With an unprecedented production budget of $25 million, and from the makers of Blue Planet: Seas of Life, comes the epic story of life on Earth. Five years in production, over 2,000 days in the field, using 40 cameramen filming across 200 locations, shot entirely in high definition, this is the ultimate portrait of our planet. A stunning television experience that captures rare action, impossible locations and intimate moments with our planet's best-loved, wildest and most elusive creatures. From the highest mountains to the deepest rivers, this blockbuster series takes you on an unforgettable journey through the daily struggle for survival in Earth's most extreme habitats. Planet Earth takes you to places you have never seen before, to experience sights and sounds you may never experience anywhere else.

Narrator: David Attenborough
Director: Alastair Fothergill 

Video  
Video codec: MPEG-4 AVC
Video resolution: 1080i
Aspect ratio: 1.78:1
Original aspect ratio: 1.78:1

Audio

English: DTS-HD HR 5.1

English, English SDH, French, Spanish (less)

Subtitles

English, English SDH, French, Spanish

Discs
50GB Blu-ray Disc
Six-disc set (6 BDs)

Playback
Region Free

Cover

Gifset

Availability

Ready Stock

Harga

Rp. 849.000

Special Features

• Audio Commentaries (Discs 1-3): Five episode commentaries are available. On "Pole to Pole," producer Mark Linfield discusses the challenges of kicking off the series properly, provides an overview of the various locales and animal life that appears, details the editing and pacing decisions made before the show debuted, and the icy trials and bone-chilling tribulations the Planet Earth photographers and crew faced along the way. For "Mountains," Vanessa Berlowitz follows in Linfield's footsteps, albeit with a bit more spunk and spirit. Her track is more anecdotal -- easily the most anecdotal of the bunch, actually -- but it's just as engaging and informative as the others, not to mention one of the best commentaries in the set. Producer Huw Cordey delves into "Caves" and strikes a balance between Linfield's matter-of-fact dissection and Berlowitz's lively chat. Better still, he rarely takes a breath, making the most of his 49-minute reflection on the weeks and months he spent trekking beneath the surface of the planet. Producer Jonny Keeling tackles "Great Plains," but struggles, at least initially, compared to his colleagues. Ironically, like the Plains themselves, his commentary is quiet and empty at times; thankfully, his silences never last for very long. Keeling eventually proves to be as thorough as the other episode producers, weaving stories, production info and accounts of day-to-day obstacles and dangers with reserved passion. Finally, producer Mark Brownlow reads a pre-prepared series of thoughts of reflections, stumbling over some of his written words and disappearing for longer stretches than the other commentators. While he has plenty of interesting factoids to share, his is, by far, the most underwhelming track and the most difficult to sink into.
• Music Only Viewing Option (Discs 1-4): Each episode includes an isolated score, albeit by way of a 448kbps Dolby Digital stereo track. The option is appreciated and the music is as wonderful as ever, but the lack of DTS-HD HR music-only mixes is, as you might imagine, a disappointment.
• Planet Earth Diaries (Discs 1-4, SD, 107 minutes): Each episode is also accompanied by a candid eight to ten-minute production featurette that goes behind-the-scenes to put faces on the men and women responsible for capturing Planet Earth's breathtaking imagery. Needless to say, the crew didn't just point their cameras out of their hotel windows and shoot whatever wandered by. As an added bonus, five of the featurettes offer an optional commentary track; Linfield returns for "Pole to Pole," Berlowitz for "Mountains," Cordey for "Caves," Keeling for "Great Plains" and Brownlow for "Shallow Seas." (Both the featurettes and their commentaries are presented in Dolby Digital stereo.)
• Great Planet Earth Moments (Disc 4, HD, 46 minutes): Sir David Attenborough narrates "the high points and not-so-high points" of the 10-episode documentary series and its production, and revisits its most stunning vistas, arresting footage, daring photography and dazzling moments. Numerous interviews with key members of the crew are peppered throughout; so many interviews that labeling this bonus episode a "Greatest Hits Reel" would be a great disservice. Fans of the series will enjoy it as much as the set's "Planet Earth Diaries." (Presented in Dolby Digital stereo.)
• The Future: Saving Species (Disc 5, HD, 59 minutes): "There have been few natural history films like it. Planet Earth. What a world we live in, and what an experience it must have been to film it. So why have the production team come away with mixed emotions?" That's the question that drives the first of three additional documentaries housed on Disc Five. The answer is that for all the awe and wonder the Natural History Unit documentarians encountered, they encountered countless species on the verge of extinction, habitats on the verge of destruction, and societies steeped in apathy. But this isn't a lofty "ideas" doc. Like the series, it puts its boots in the mud, going to each region, hearing from native conversationalists (not just wealthy Westerners) and digs into the new approaches and sometimes radical efforts being made in conservation around the world.(Presented in Dolby Digital stereo.)
• The Future: Into the Wilderness (Disc 5, HD, 59 minutes): "Wilderness areas can be stunningly beautiful, and are certainly vital sanctuaries for wildlife. But are they even more than that? This program will explore the deeper importance of wilderness. It will ask how it serves us now, and why isn't just virgin territory waiting for an ever-expanding humanity to take it over." Like "Saving Species," "Into the Wilderness" examines the threat posed by population, the growing economy, and the manner in which humans use their wealth. If it's preachy, it delivers a compelling sermon; if it's sobering, it should be. Without pomp or circumstance, this second Disc Five documentary takes its time and keeps its passions in check, offering an engrossing study of the tipping balance between mankind and the wilderness at large without beating environmental war drums (too loudly) or providing a one-sided examination of the socioeconomic and geopolitical issues at the heart of the worldwide crisis. (Presented in Dolby Digital stereo.)
• The Future: Living Together (Disc 5, HD, 59 minutes): "This is a time when our planet is under assault like never before, and we are only beginning to realize how severe the consequences may be for the quality of our own lives and for the quality of our children's lives. For me, the only good news in this picture is that we also see glimmers of the solution. We can begin to see strategies that work. That we can begin to shift our economy so it works for conservation instead of against it." Rounding out Disc Five's three-part reality check, "Living Together" again poses a level-headed argument and makes a strong case for conservation. Through a series of blunt but captivating interviews, it tackles the disparity between civilization's fundamental needs and its startlingly suicidal tendencies to eliminate the life-giving sources of those needs. We need water to survive, yet it's in that same water supply that we dump our trash; we need food to thrive, yet we neglect the lands on which it grows; we need a balance to be maintained, yet we sit idly by as the agents of that balance go extinct. It's tough to watch but essential to understand, and "Living Together" does a fine job with a daunting message. (Presented in Dolby Digital stereo.)
• Snow Leopard: Beyond the Myth (Disc 6, HD, 49 minutes): Disc Six also offers a trio of bonus documentaries, but this time each one is smaller in scope. Up first is a fascinating introduction to the elusive snow leopard and its battle for survival in the mountains of Pakistan. Rather than follow a biologist or a wildlife photographer, though, it follows a journalist who's worked in and around Northern Pakistan for the last twenty years as he searches for snow leopards, studies their behavior and attempts to push past the various myths and misunderstandings surrounding the snow leopard and hone in on the true nature of the beast. (Presented with a DTS-HD High Resolution 5.1 surround track.)
• Secrets of the Maya Underworld (Disc 6, SD, 49 minutes): The Yucatan is a place of great mystery and even greater underground intrigue, and modern explorers have found something in the Maya underworld that, as narrator Simon MacCorkindale puts it, "has changed the way we understand the Yucatan forever." However, "Secrets of the Maya Underworld" doesn't have the same hook as many of the other documentaries in the set. It plays things too close to the chest and avoids mentioning what sorts of Yucatan-altering discoveries lie in wait. Don't get me wrong, it makes vague promises that mention amazing revelations, and it eventually delivers, but it takes twenty minutes to get there. It's still worth watching, mind you. I would just exhaust all the other extras before turning to "Secrets of the Maya Underworld." (Presented in Dolby Digital stereo.)
• Elephant Nomads of the Namib Desert (Disc 6, HD, 49 minutes): I don't know what it is about elephants -- maybe it isn't, maybe it's just the quality of Disc Six's third bonus documentary -- but watching the massive mammals lord over the desert, free from poachers, was one of the most extraordinary hours I spent on my return trip to Planet Earth. "Elephant Nomads of the Namib Desert" is a majestic and engrossing study of the elephants and their families, the protection the older members provide their calves, the aggression of wandering bulls, the struggle to find food as the seasons change, and the plights of several individual elephants. (Presented in Dolby Digital stereo.)
• Frozen Planet Sneak Peek (Disc 6, HD, 13 minutes): An extended preview of Frozen Planet, the upcoming seven-part nature documentary series co-produced by the BBC and the Discovery Channel.