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FLICKS: See Great Bear Rainforest 3D on Eddie Albert Day

Posted on 18 April 2019 by LeslieM

By “Cinema” Dave

http://cinemadave.livejournal.com

This Monday, April 22 marks the 113th birthday of actor Eddie Albert. Albert’s career spanned six decades as a leading man and as a character actor. He was Oscar nominated for Roman Holiday in 1954 and for The Heartbreak Kid 19 years later.  While a costar to actors like John Wayne, Ronald Reagan and Burt Reynolds, Albert is best remembered for his television show Green Acres, in which he, Eva Gabor and Arnold Ziffel starred in 170 episodes.

During the final season of Green Acres, he became politically active with environmental issues for the remainder of his life. TV Guide called him “an ecological Paul Revere” for his work with the Boy Scouts of America, serving on the Department of Energy’s Advisory Board, growing an organic garden in his backyard and founding the City Children’s Farms for inner city children. He also participated in the creation of “Earth Day,” in which organizers honor him by holding this event on the actor’s birthday.

The preservation of the environment is the responsibility of the current generation, who are merely stewards of the land for future generations. Forty years ago, broadcast television did a better job presenting environmental science to the public, minus the politicization. Fortunately, a documentary like Great Bear Rainforest 3D is still being produced and can be seen on a very big screen.

Set in British Columbia near the Alaska Peninsular, Great Bear Rainforest 3D is currently on rotation at the Ft. Lauderdale Museum of Discovery and Science on the 6-story IMAX screen. Narrated by Ryan Reynolds, this film features overwhelming visuals of a land with very little human contact.

The only human contact is the indigenous people who live off the land with a symbiotic relationship with the bears and the land. Both creature’s diets thrive on the salmon swimming upstream.  With technical precision, this 10 minute sequence covers much drama. One key sequence features a Mama Grizzly Bear attempting to feed herself and her cubs while fending off a greedy male bear. Upon catching a fish, there is a pretty grisly sequence in which a bear skins and devours a salmon that is still half alive.

The star of this filmis Mox, a white bear. To the Native Americans, Mox is the spirit bear of the land. While the science is real and the cinematography is remarkable, this film presented an understated reason why religion is variably part of science.

As we have tragically learned from Notre Dame Cathedral this week, it was the science of neglect that caused the fire, a chemistry of elements that ignited the blaze [lack of fire prevention safeguards]. Yet, when the inferno was doused, the image of a cross illuminated through the darkness and smoke.

Have a happy and thoughtful Passover, Earth Day, Eddie Albert Day and Happy Easter.

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