8 May 2011 21:00 – 22:00 BBC 1
Perhaps the most expensive television docudrama to date; Atlantis: End of a World, Birth of a Legend, makes the most of Hollywood latest technologies. Bringing Plato’s fantasy tale ‘Atlantis’ fused with scientific research, to the mass audiences.
This epic digital masterpiece attempts to engage audiences with a different prospective of what may have happened to a lost civilisation on the island of Thera, home to Minoans during the bronze age of 1620 BC.
This is an exquisite content rich drama, with some very beautiful detail costume’s, that seamlessly combines authentic footages with CGI imagining to produce a drama like film that could have easily been made into a full-length feature.
The aerial shots, cloud ash scenes and the wonderful dance sequence leading up to the bull sacrifice. Were just some of the triumphal elements, director Tony Mitchell was able to incorporate in this highly complicated cinematic achievement.
Much less desired however, is the often confusing facts with fiction and contrasting inconsistent accents.
The over use of CGI obviously constrained the budget, which meant the production could only be 60 minutes in length. As a result, it finishes too quickly and gives us little time to develop any real relationships with the cast and some of the evidence. Which is a bit of a shame, because some of the narratives were lost during the focus on imagery, of what could otherwise have been a very compelling drama.
Tom Conti narration did not work for me either; for me he was one of the weaker elements. While I believe initially he was a credible choice for this docudrama. He fell short at times, to deliver an inspiring and compelling narrative that would have kept me convinced all the way through. Such as the likes of, Brittany Hughes or Sir David Attenborough would have done.
Nevertheless, what we have is a cutting edge docudramas and a credible sample of what is possible in the future. ‘Atlantis: End of a World, Birth of a Legend’
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