A documentary without words is the highest form of the art. This is an environmental art-piece in the spirit of Koyaanisqaatsi and Baraka, and quite as beautiful as either. Gorgeous images of nature and wild animals in the Rocky Mountains are presented to a stunning soundtrack.

Then man appears on the scene and we see scenes of destruction for economic reasons. Towards the end comes a ridiculously ironic scene where the wilderness has been turned into a ski-resort, and simpering city-dwellers are giving themselves a "wilderness experience". The soundtrack pays an obnoxious soft-rock song "There's No Silence Like the Snow" which is cloying in its triviality, and far from silent. This is the only time we hear any words, and they mean the exact opposite of what they say. (The ironic use of soundtrack as counterpoint was something developed by Stanley Kubrick, and Canning uses it to good effect).

All this would seem trite if we had a commentator telling us what to think, but getting to interpret the meaning of the images makes it much more fun.

 WARNING: Temples of Time exists in two versions: the full 41-minute version, and a (bad) abridged 22-minute version. Make sure you watch the full 41-minute version which does justice to the vision of the director (you can buy it direct from NFB).

The documentary is a form of non-fiction storytelling that aims to present factual information, insights, and perspectives on real-world subjects, events, issues, or people. Documentaries can cover a wide range of topics, including history, science, culture, social issues, nature, biographies, and more.

Dziga Vertov in Man with a Movie Camera (1929)

The short form refers to creative works characterized by their brevity and concise storytelling. Unlike full-length feature films, short films have a running time of less than 45 minutes, while TV shorts have a running time of less than 22 minutes.

Benedict Cumberbatch in The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar (2023)

The natural wonder of the Canadian Rockies and Garibaldi Park in British Columbia.

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Temples of Time

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