Les ailes pourpres - Le mystère des flamants

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

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.

Like MARCH OF THE PENGUINS, THE CRIMSON WING is a nature documentary focused on a single subject, produced by Walt Disney Studios of all people. Thankfully this isn't a twee or sentimental type account of the material, rather a solid, fact-focused documentary packed full of gorgeous photography of the birds.

It turns out that Lesser Flamingos are the birds behind the myth of the Phoenix, and the correlation of their lifecycle to that of the legendary bird rising from the ashes is an engaging one. But this is a film that offers more to the casual viewer, with plenty of tragedy and chaos along the way. There are the inevitably tear-jerking scenes involving the chicks that didn't make it, and such moments are tragic beyond belief.

THE CRIMSON WING offers strong commentary by experienced narrator Mariella Frostrup and a lean, mean, running time which excises extraneous material from the narrative. Best of all, though, it has fantastic cinematography that helps to fuel a colourful, engaging and thorough exploration of the topic.

Well, I must say that I was really quite impressed with this "Disneynature" documentary that took an in-depth look at the flamingos of Africa who (once a year) arrive by the 1000s at Lake Natron (in Tanzania) in order to mate and raise their young.

In part, this thoughtful documentary was, without question, a very sad tale from the viewpoint of the survival of the flamingo chicks who must quickly gather their strength in order to endure the hardships that immediately come before them and challenge their very existence.

With its excellent photography and its equally superb soundtrack music (from The Cinematic Orchestra), I certainly recommend this DVD very highly to those of you who are interested in witnessing such an amazing phenomenon like this one from the world of nature where many astounding marvels are there for us to behold.

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.