GHOST BIRD (Crocker, 2009)
Kino Lorber, DVD, Release Date August 16, 2014
Review by Christopher S. Long
No wonder nobody likes skeptics.
In 2004, an Arkansas man boating
through the swamp spotted an ivory-billed woodpecker, a species
thought to be extinct since the early part of the twentieth century.
A fleeting glimpse of the majestic creature recorded on video set the
bird-watching community on fire, attracting the attention of
ornithologists and enthusiasts from around the world. The discovery
breathed new life into the small town of Brinkley, AR; tourists
flocking to spot the elusive bird could browse at an ivory-billed
woodpecker gift shop, enjoy $25 ivory-billed woodpecker haircuts, and
munch down on ivory-billed woodpecker burgers (not made of actual
ivory-billed woodpeckers). Even the small-town newspaper the Brinkley
Argus enjoyed a surge in circulation thanks to their new feathered
friend.
Hosannas rang throughout the land and
both man and bird lived happily ever after... until a few smarty
pants scientists crashed the party by pointing out that the bird
barely seen in the grainy video looked an awful lot like the plain
old pileated woodpecker. And since nobody gives a damn about the
plain old pileated woodpecker, a spirited debate ensued.
In “Ghost Bird” (2009), director
Scott Crocker crafts a surprisingly suspenseful tale as he follows
the battle of experts on each side as well as the more fundamental
tug of war between faith and empiricism. Unlike with global warming,
the scientific community did not reach consensus. A Cornell
researcher claimed new audio evidence supported the discovery, but
the skeptics continued to do their skeptic thing. The annoying fact
that nobody else spotted the faintest sign of another ivory-billed
woodpecker was problematic, but parties with vested interests as well
as those who just think it's more fun to believe could cherry-pick
the evidence to suit themselves.
Refreshingly, there are no villains in
this nifty nature tale. Crocker discovers fascinating people on both
sides, most notably Nancy Tanner, wife of the deceased ornithologist
James Tanner who worked with ivory-billed woodpeckers more than half
a century ago. She relates a rich history of this beautiful phantom
creature, so revered by local Indians they called it “The Lord God
Bird.” Even if you're not a bird enthusiast, the film makes it easy
to appreciate why people would get so excited about the potential
discovery, though one researcher offers the depressing observation
that efforts to track the ivory-billed woodpecker in the past may
have led directly to its extinction.
That's a sobering thought, but the
movie is somewhat less successful when shoehorning in broader
ecological concerns, including a somewhat arbitrary warning that
humans will render fifty percent of species (all species?) extinct by
the end of this century. Fortunately, the movie only occasionally
wanders afield, usually staying focused on this amazing bird and the
people who cared about it. Everyone wanted the unlikely survival
story to be true, they just differed on whether they required proof
to believe it.
Video:
The film is presented in a wide-screen
anamorphic transfer. The SD transfer from Kino Lorber is a solid
effort with no obvious signs of damage, boosting, or distortion.
There are a lot of talking heads, but also some lovely swamp and
forest footage (cinematography by Damir Frkovic) and the transfer
treats it as well as a standard def transfer can be expected to.
Audio:
The Dolby Digital Stereo mix is
efficient if not dynamic. There's some great music in the film,
including the Sonny Terry track “Lost John.” Only obsessed
cinephiles would instantly identify that track with Werner Herzog
thanks to its unforgettable use at the end of the masterpiece
“Stroszek” (and “Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans” if
memory serves). The company credited with the film is “Small Change
Productions” with “small change” also being an unforgettable
line from “Stroszek.” A coincidence? A fine original score by Zoë
Keating helps too.
No subtitles are provided.
Extras:
The disc includes nine extra/deleted
scenes, running a total of approximately 40 minutes.
Final Thoughts:
“Ghost Bird” is the most compelling
ivory-billed woodpecker documentary I've ever seen, and ever expect
to see. Long may the Lord God Bird live.
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