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Overlooked & Underrated Docs & Features
(click on broll or dschwartz for all his posts)
Exuma: A Visual Feast First time director Colin Ruggiero’s documentary is 84 minutes of non-stop visual ecstasy. His is an unusual nature documentary with minimal narration and maximal emphasis on beauty. The film’s title refers to the Exumas, a string of islands east of the Bahamas.
“Exuma” is lightly and gracefully narrated by Susanna Girolamo, a lady of the islands. She also appears on camera under and above the water, righteously showing off her beautiful home. Although the film’s primary focus is life under water, Ruggiero’s camera also explores the environment above land, the shore, and the rapidly changing weather—including many time-lapse shots.
It all began with “2001: A Space Odyssey”. We went to see Kubrick’s film not so much for its allegory as for ‘the trip’ through which Dave is propelled at film’s end. A few people might have seen the film during its 1968 first run for, let’s say, about 11 times, and maybe these people even bought the Blu-ray disc and saw the film some more as they shared it with their twin nieces.
Quantity of viewings notwithstanding, “2001” evoked the possibilities—for a mainstream audience—of film as a purely visual aesthetic experience. The only film I’d seen since 1968 that so thoroughly explores these possibilities is “Realms of Light” by Iasos. I now add “Exuma” to that way-too-short list.
And I’ll state the obvious: Y’ gotta see it on Blu-ray. If you haven’t added a Blu-ray player to your entertainment center, “Exuma” is your tipping point.