[Critique] On your screens: Dinos, teenagers and a significant epidemic

Sir David and the “dinos”

Wildlife documentary series hosted by one of the pioneers of the genre, Sir David Attenborough, are rarely disappointing. prehistoric planetthe latest production (from BBC Studios) in which the veteran journalist and science popularizer took part, is simply dazzling, even if it depicts a “reality” that no human being has been able to see with their own eyes…

Thanks to the visual effects techniques used in the filming of the Lion King and jungle book in real shots, producer Jon Favreau and his team were able to create from scratch scenes of the daily life of dinosaurs and other animals that lived in the Upper Cretaceous, between 60 and 100 million years ago. Only that. Each of the five episodes is built around a type of habitat (coasts, deserts, expanses of fresh water, cold areas and abundant forests) hosting these fabulous beasts brought to life using the most research. recent in paleontology. As in any good animal documentary series, each of the tables presenting one or more particular species is built on a plot that keeps the spectator in suspense, to the point where he fears for the future of the specimens staged. And yet, these disappeared a long time ago…

To see with the family, especially with your little dinosaur fans who will come out even more passionate about these beasts from another time.

prehistoric planet

Apple TV+, starting May 23

Creative youth

There are many opportunities for young people gifted in the arts to compete to showcase their talents in the media and elsewhere. The project The creators, sponsored by Quebec public television, instead offered the chance to enlightened teenagers from all over the province to improve thanks to the advice of a professional mentor practicing the discipline that interests them. They learned how to show their approach on various platforms, then were able to shine, without competition, in a television production worthy of a gala.

The six young people we were able to discover in the web series The creators(available at telequebec.tv), both nervous and impressed to have been paired with renowned artists such as Marie-Mai, Émile Bilodeau and Anas Hassouna to refine their creation of visual arts, slam, dance, of music and humor are revealed in a more confident and luminous light in this great television celebration hosted by Mathieu Dufour and Pony. And we can’t help but be moved and thrilled by their enthusiasm and that of the public around them. A very nice unifying TV initiative, which we hope to see renewed next year.

The creators: the big night
Télé-Québec, Friday, May 27, 8 p.m., rebroadcast Saturday, May 28, 7 p.m. and on telequebec.tv


The Plague in America

The current pandemic has given rise to numerous comparisons of major epidemics of the past in order to highlight their similarities and differences and to help, to a certain extent, to draw some lessons from them. It is undoubtedly in this movement that Plague at the Golden Gatenew episode of the documentary series AmericanExperiencewhich relates in detail a rather dark episode in the history of our neighbors to the south: the very first epidemic of bubonic plague which affected the United States, and more particularly the important Chinatown of San Francisco, at the turn of the 19and century.

The story of this epidemic, which terrorized the Californian city during the first decade of the XXand century, is in some ways reminiscent of aspects of the current pandemic: the first cases appeared in the city’s Chinatown, which was confined for a long time; its inhabitants suffered the stigma and racism of their white fellow citizens; some political leaders have denied the existence of the epidemic, which has delayed its eradication… There are many airs of déjà vu in this relevant… and discouraging documentary.

Plague at the Golden Gate

PBS, Tuesday, May 24, 9 p.m.

To see in video


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