The Crimson Wing: Mystery of the Flamingos

G 7.3
2008 1 hr 18 min Documentary

In the remote and forgotten wilderness of Lake Natron, in northern Tanzania, one of nature's last great mysteries unfolds: the birth, life and death of a million crimson-winged flamingos.

  • Cast:
    Mariella Frostrup , Zabou Breitman , Karoline Herfurth

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Reviews

Kaelan Mccaffrey
2008/12/17

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

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Nicole
2008/12/18

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

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Marva
2008/12/19

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

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Ginger
2008/12/20

Very good movie overall, highly recommended. Most of the negative reviews don't have any merit and are all pollitically based. Give this movie a chance at least, and it might give you a different perspective.

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MartinHafer
2008/12/21

This is the first of a new generation of nature documentaries from Disney and they picked a VERY difficult topic to cover. Instead of the usual locations like jungles or plains, this one is filmed in the most hellish place in Tanzania--near the Kenyan border in a region made toxic to most life by volcanic ash. However, surprisingly, 2.5 million flamingos return to Lake Natron each year- -despite it having a pH of 10.5 and being made up of a mixture of ash and salt. The film follows the flamingos for a year--as the return to do their courtship rituals, lay and hatch eggs and then grow into adulthood. It's all quite lovely with nice cinematography yet Disney chose not to release this to theaters--though it would have been lovely to see on the giant screen. My only reservations are that kids might be a bit shook up because nature is pitiless and you see a lot of flamingos die. Also, biologists might dislike how the narration often becomes much too prosaic and not exactly scientific. Still, the overall effect is breathtaking and if you see it, try to see it on as large a TV as possible.

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Hollywood_Yoda
2008/12/22

I saw "The Crimson Wing" a few years ago, it was the first Disneynature documentary I had seen. I never thought Flamingos could be as beautiful as presented in this film. The filmmakers and cinematographer's did a great job getting the shots of these wild animals.In the film, it explains how mankind has been devastating to the ecosystem and the habitats of flamingos. The BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico a few years back destroyed a lot of their natural habitat.You get to see the life-cycle of these amazing birds, from birth to death. This is a true educational experience. The quality is great, and it's a film the whole family can watch together.

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ajs-10
2008/12/23

Known simply as 'The Crimson Wing' here in the UK, I remember it causing a bit of a stir when it was released just over a year ago. Of course it all died down pretty quickly and the film didn't pick up any major awards. Needless to say it caught my attention and so when it turned up on TV I decided to give it a viewing.This documentary tells the story of Lake Natron in northern Tanzania and how every year, after the rains come, a massive flock of Lesser Flamingos comes to the lake to breed. It tells of all the trials and tribulations of the young chicks, of all the dangers they must survive and, yes, there are scenes depicting the fates of those that don't. We are also told about some of the wildlife surrounding the lake and how it gives the flamingos their unique crimson plumage.A great score and some superb cinematography give this film the edge over other nature documentaries I've seen. There is also a great narration delivered by British TV presenter, Mariella Frostrup which only added to my enjoyment.It did tend to sag a bit towards the end, but overall quite an enjoyable and informative film. I wouldn't recommend it for the very young, but I think for anyone interested in wildlife its well worth a viewing. Over all, recommended.My score: 6.8/10

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colin_coyne
2008/12/24

Crimson Wing is a documentary based on the lives of some flamingo chicks throughout their birth to young adulthood … Filmed mainly around Lake Natron in Northern Tanzania.Finely narrated by Zabou Breiman, with some fantastic wildlife photography and a really moving music score this film gets inside the adventures experienced over the period of a year – showing seasonal changes – births, deaths, trials and tribulations of the young birds and their weird and wonderful habitats – especially interesting are the strange "salt islands" that the flamingo's use for nesting and rearing their young.Many of the audience were engrossed by this film … and many of the children especially seemed to "adopt" and be entranced by the story and the chicks and were genuinely concerned for the birds well-being.A fascinating bird's eye view into the lives of flamingo's … if you didn't like or know much about these birds before – then you'll grow to be fascinated by them from watching this well crafted documentary, superb, high-quality photography, beautiful landscapes and a stirring musical score.Recommended for lovers of nature documentaries everywhere.

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