No comments about Spanish Narration - Mexico City - Metropolis In The Mountains.

2 comments about Travel Brazil:Rio DE Janeiro.

1. While the video quality of this film is good, I feel calling it a "guide" is missleading. It seems the film crew spent one weekend filming only a few of the highspots. Also, the commentary was rather sparse, with little useful information.



2. Do not waste your money or time on this video. Not only does it provide virtually no information about the city of Rio, it is produced in poor English and has almost no real information and a good deal of misinformation about the city. The soundtrack for the entire video is one muzak song, so while we see a few visual images of the city, we do not hear any of the music or sounds that should accompany them. Useless!

1 comments about The Best of Norway; Video Tape.

1. An excellent VHS video. Narration and pronunciation of Norwegian towns, provinces and special attractions all combine to make for a very informative journey through Norway. You'll see country wedding processions, helicopter views of the fjords and mountains, roaring waterfalls, a polar bear in search of food aboard a fishing boat in Svalbard, and old photos of days long ago. The whole length of Norway is explored. It is by far the best travel movie I have seen about Norway.

2 comments about Tibet: On the Edge of Change.

1. You've seen Kundun, this is the unglamorous version. Kuby goes directly to the Tibetans themselves and asks them on camera how they feel about the situation - the Dalai Lama, the Chinese invasion, the destruction of the monasteries, and so on.

   Tibet was filmed mostly undercover in 16mm format. It evokes the tribulations of the Tibetans who live in the shadow of their occupiers. We are shown the destruction of monasteries and violent repression being enacted on peaceful protestors. China comes out of this looking ecologically destructive and imperialist.

   Tibetans interviewed by Kuby want to see the lifting of repression and the return of the Dalai Lama. They talk enthusiastically and openly of the old days before the occupation. They explain why they willingly supported the monasteries with generous gifts and why their religion is so important to them.

   This documentary is an important forerunner to Kuby's more recent work, "Living Buddha".

   A thought provoking film.




2. China's invasion of Tibet in 1959 resulted in the exile of that land's spiritual and political leader, the 14th Dalai Lama and the slow erosion of a unique culture. Tibet On The Edge of Change attempts to highlight Tibetan culture and show its slow demise since the invasion.

   As the viewer you are taken to this land where you are given a feel for the topography and the people who inhabit it. You witness a people who practice interdependence on one another for survival, have a reverance for the land, are subsistance farmers (barley and corn the main crops) and have developed a unique form of Buddhism. These practioners of peace created a culture where mutual respect was the norm.

   The next view you are given is that of the Chinese impact. Lands that were once heavily forrested are now stripped bare causing erosion problems. China introduced strip mining into the area causing further environmental problems. To make matters worse, China housed a nuclear dump into Tibet which no doubt will evoke more devestation upon the land.

   You see a glimpse of Tibetan culture as it attempts to survive under Chinese oppression but it appears as if Tibetan life is barely surviving. Now the Chinese outnumber the Tibetans who have become strangers in their own land.

   As a whole this video gives you a wide sweeping view of what is happening in Tibet but it lacks depth. Absent are the voices of the people who are undergoing this oppression. Even though you get an idea of the oppression going on you fail to get the feeling. In fact the Tibetans look and act like happy people content with their lot. The sense of urgency and the importance of this culture doesn't move you. You also don't get a feel of how Tibetan Culture has changed under Chinese rule.

   Despite those faults the video is good as a general introduction to Tibet and the impact of China on the country. If used in conjunction with other resources the viewer will receive a better understanding of the problems that Tibet is undergoing.

No comments about Yosemite: The 100 Year Flood - Movement in Tides.

No comments about Spirit of the Sound.

No comments about Globe Trekker: Czech Republic and Southern Poland.

No comments about Senic Wonders of America: Atlantic Vistas.

No comments about Venice & Rome.

No comments about Lobsters, LAUGHTER & Lighthouses: Maine's Favorite Humorist Goes Tourist Hunting Along the Maine Coast.