L'Empire des chimpanzés

CHIMP EMPIRE is documentary filmmaking at its finest. Breathtakingly shot, with footage that startles, this journey into the Ugandan rain forest explores the complex culture of chimpanzees, revealing their social and political structures in significant detail.

That chimpanzees, like all the great apes, demonstrate surprisingly human qualities -- or perhaps it's the opposite -- offers fascinating insights into the instincts and thought processes of higher primates at large. The chimps form family units and tribes, jockey for power, form alliances, and engage in war, mimicking their more sophisticated human cousins, while demonstrating how, in spite of their intelligence, they are (like us?) captive to their intrinsic natures.

This series is sophisticated, thought provoking, educational, and appropriate for viewers of all ages. It's no surprise that, as of this writing (4/26/2023), CHIMP EMPIRE is ranked third in Netflix's children's category. That said, very young viewers may require guidance.

Overall, CHIMP EMPIRE is a feast for the eyes, insightful, and emotional in ways unexpected. The parallels between chimp and human behavior, while not expressly stated until the very end, are unmistakable throughout and add value to an already astounding effort.

I would like to have seen some cartographic representations of the chimps' various territories and the geographical area where this story takes place, but considering the broader effort, that's nitpicking.

Documentary films don't come much better than this. I'll say it again: The footage is simply meta! Recommendation: Strong watch.

Clearly a lot of hard work went into filming this series, really wish the script writing moved on from ascribing human stereotypes onto wild African chimps. Science has moved on, humans have moved on - we can handle nuance and complexity. Why go to all the trouble and expense to film wild animals when they are just turned into cartoon characters. A troop of 120 members is extraordinary, one male chimp could not have be "the alpha" without a complex support structure of negotiations with " female alphas" and other males. Gladiatorial battles and hunting - check. What happens the other 95% of time to keep to troupe together we will never know.

I started watching, flipping thru the channels and I assumed I'd give it a minute and flip but this isn't your typical Animal show. The Director has studied these Chimps & shows to the viewers the deep level of societal interaction they have. They're tremendously smart, I had no idea. Fascinating stuff. Hope they make another season but knowing Netflix, this was a one time deal. I started watching, flipping thru the channels and I assumed I'd give it a minute and flip but this isn't your typical Animal show. The Director has studied these Chimps & shows to the viewers the deep level of societal interaction they have. They're tremendously smart, I had no idea. Fascinating stuff. Hope they make another season but knowing Netflix, this was a one time deal.

I've never seen anything like this.

Animal documentaries, especially African animal films have become commonplace and frankly rather predictable. But Chimp Empire is something new. This four-episode series is like watching Game of Thrones on a more intimate and intense scale. Much of the credit goes to the cinematographers who have managed a vital technique. Somehow they have brought us so close into this Ugandan chimp tribe the we can see every facial expression, look into every eye and recognize all of the players. Like humans, they play subtle politics, make war, care for children and kill enemies. Narrator Mahershala Ali weaves the power struggles of these personalities so subtly that he manages to amplify the power of jaw-dropping scenes.

I don't know how they did it, but I'll be watching all four episodes.

I am almost 60 years old, and I have probably seen upwards of 500 nature documentaries in my lifetime. Short of Planet Earth, which was as epic as is possible, this just might be the best one I've ever seen. It certainly is the best documentary I've seen about a specific clan. I felt like I was right there with them. Like I was feeling what they were feeling. Their fears, their hopes, their joys, their silly moments, and their terrifying moments. The cinematography is incomprehensively superb. At its most powerful moments, it is gut wrenching. As beautiful as some moments are, "at play in the Fields of the Lord," others are devastating. I wish the drive to wage organized, strategized war for nothing more than power were limited to our broken species. There are scenes that sent chills up my spine, because literally the only difference between what we are seeing and what we know has happened for millennia with humans, is the absence of shields and weapons Watching what happens despite the aggressors having all the food and space they need is pretty devastating. If only we could explain to them that we've decimated their numbers so terribly that they just can't afford to kill each other. In any event, difficult moments aside, you'll really want to watch this. It's the closest you could ever dream of coming to being inside a chimp society.