Walking with Prehistoric Beasts

Original title: Walking with Beasts

TV Mini Series
2001
Not Rated
30m

IMDb RATING

8.3/10

3.4K

YOUR RATING

Play trailer0:34

1 Video

39 Photos

Computer Animation Animation Documentary

Using the latest digital technology, the era between the dinosaurs and man is superbly recreated by the BBC and Discovery Channel in another winning production from the coalition.Using the latest digital technology, the era between the dinosaurs and man is superbly recreated by the BBC and Discovery Channel in another winning production from the coalition.Using the latest digital technology, the era between the dinosaurs and man is superbly recreated by the BBC and Discovery Channel in another winning production from the coalition.

Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

8.3/10

3.4K

YOUR RATING

Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

Won 1 Primetime Emmy
- 5 wins & 4 nominations total

Episodes9

Browse episodes

TopTop-rated2 seasons2001

Videos1

Trailer 0:34

Walking With Prehistoric Beasts

Photos39

Trivia
The great flightless bird Gastornis, which is presented as a fierce top-predator in the show's first episode, was actually omnivorous, eating mostly plants and nuts. Its portrayal as a fearsome carnivore is unsubstantiated. The filmmakers were aware of the debate about the bird's diet, but chose to go with the predatory hypothesis, reasoning that its beak was far too robust and strong for just eating nuts. However, Gastornis' beak was not hooked like the beaks of most predatory birds and it also lacked sharp claws. Chemical analysis of its fossil bones post-2010 also found no trace of meat in its diet.

Quotes
[Last lines.]
Kenneth Branagh: [narrating] We have since built museums to celebrate the past, and spend decades studying prehistoric lives. And if all this has taught us anything, it is this: no species lasts forever.

Alternate versions
The Discovery Channel broadcast edits all six episodes into one program, splicing in the documentaries Triumph of the Beasts (2001) and The Beasts Within (2001), and is narrated by Stockard Channing. In addition, many scenes of gore and sex have been removed.

Connections
Featured in Triumph of the Beasts (2001)

User reviews13

Review

Featured review

8/10

Really one million years B.C.!

Even has some humans in it, but none resembling Raquel Welch, nor the phony language.

It's a live-action documentary in six parts, ranging from the meteor that extirpated the dinosaurs up to the Ice Ages. The Cenozoic Era, largely overlooked, but most important in shaping today's fauna (including us!)--much more relevant than The Big Show that was the dinosaur period.

The most interesting sequences are on the giant animals of South America, the development of whales, and the battles for control of land between the survivors of the apocalypse at the end of the Cretaceous period (parts 5, 2, and 1, if I remember correctly).

This was produced by the BBC, following its big success with Walking with Dinosaurs. It's got the same mix of imagined local filmed drama, a la Wild Kingdom, with some basic paleontological exposition. The live action stuff is mostly realistic and there seems to have been considerable research on the backdrop. Each part is based on the fossil records of a particular location. I doubt this sequel was such a big hit, but for the reasons I've suggested above (and the general unfamiliarity of what you'll see), probably more valuable and educational.