Pangolin: Chemins de vie

First of all, this story does not justify its 88-minute runtime, sorry. There's simply not that much content in it, at least in this form. It could easily have been told in a ca. 40 minutes and would have made a great short doc.

The pangolin, while undeniably adorable, has limited behaviors and therefore limited filming possibilities - although the cinematography is superb. But after a while, it feels like you're watching the same happenings and same shots on repeat.

The human character is a kind and nice person, but not particularly charismatic or compelling. I felt that almost any of the other people involved in the rewilding effort could have made for a more engaging protagonist.

It feels like the creators tried to follow a similar formula to My Octopus Teacher, though with a different narrative, but this time it just didn't work. Especially not at this length.

I truly loved this documentrary. Reading through some of the more negative reviews on here, I feel like a lot of folks have overlooked some key points the film was trying to make about the difficulties of the rewilding process. I think that those who feel that the Pangolin's walker, Gareth, was being too hands on or cuddling the Pangolin too much need to also take into account that the Pangolin was literally just a baby when it was rescued from the illegal wildlife trade and needed to, not only gain the weight to help him survive the wild before release, but, also, needed to learn the skills that would help protect him from future predators. A baby pangolin needs 24/7 round the clock care. I can't imagine that a total lack of nurturing would have benefited the Pangolin. Kulu also needed to have a certain amount of familiarity with Gareth as he was taking Kulu out on the reserve every day for months to forage and learn to be wild again. In the film Kulu was shown to often be making a run for it, so I never got the sense that he was being conditioned to " not be afraid" of humans. I think that it must have been difficult to give Kulu the space he needed to learn how to be wild, while at the same time helping him avoid the electric fences and other dangers. The rewilding process here was not at all a simple or straightforward feat, and I feel the film did a good job of explaining this. "There was a fear of failure". They were open about the fact that there were learning curves, but their previous, less hands-on attempts to rewild the Pangolins had been failing and they needed to change their approach. I was personally fine with the amount of screentime and backstory that Gareth had in the film, and enjoyed his narration and his commentary that Kulu helped him change the way he saw the world was moving. He volunteered over a year of his life for Kulu's rewilding, and is now working on projects to modify electric fences to help further save Pangolins. I enjoyed hearing a little bit about the people who are helping these beautiful creatures. I loved this documentary and can't wait for Pippa Ehrlich's next one!

What makes this a captivating, magnificient watch is one part direction, one part visuals, and eight parts Anne Nikitin.

As much as the documentary moved me, it was due greatly in part to the earthly, seismic, tectonic, and elemental soundtrack.

Merging deep bass with the rumbles of thunder, soothingly seguing into the sound of rain against the backdrop of soulful ululations of Venda folk songs, the music transports you into a world of goosebumps.

For the purists, this might not be a documentary, but then, does it really matter? The film brings to light the plight of one of the rarest, most reclusive, most ancient of mammals to still roam the earth.

I would much rather call a movie, but that would be doing it a disservice. I would call it a documentary, and that would be a stretch.

What it can, however, be called is a love letter. A love letter to nature. A billet doux to the underdog. A liebesbrief to one of the geekiest, quiestest, and unassuming of mammals.

Watch it, and make everyone around you watch it!

"Kulu's Journey" so beautifully captures the relationship between a pangolin and his human caretaker.

In many ways, this documentary is a tribute to the unsung heroes on the frontlines of wildlife conservation around the world - sacrificing their time, relationships and worldly possessions for the animals they care so deeply for.

Without people like Gareth Thomas, pangolins will be reduced to nothing more than stories of a bygone era. It's thanks to volunteers and conservationists alike that we are able to share our planet with such incredible species.

A must watch, and another stellar documentary produced by Pippa Ehrlich and her team.

I didn't tear up until David lifted Kulu at the end-now my eyes are swollen and my heart feels so full. Seeing him feed this tiny, trembling pangolin, whispering to her with that gentle kindness, I felt something crack open inside me. There's no heavy-handed lecture-just pure, vulnerable moments that make you want to stand up for these creatures. Pippa Greenwood has a gift for letting feelings breathe. I keep replaying that final scene in my head. It's rare to feel this small and hopeful at once. I'm still crying days later. I can't shake its gentle power. It left a permanent mark on my soul. .