100
Film Threat
Microcosmos is that rare film to lead us, to reiterate why the camera is just as important as the paintbrush, keyboard, pen, chunks of clay, and anything else that can be used to make art. This is art.
Microcosmos (Microcosmos : Le peuple de l'herbe)
Critic Rating
(read reviews)User Rating
- France,
- Switzerland,
- Italy
- 1996
- · 80m
Director
Marie Pérennou
Cast
Jacques Perrin,
Kristin Scott Thomas
Genre
Documentary
A fascinating cinematic record of the interactions between insects and other small invertebrates. With incredible close-ups, slow motion, and time lapse photography, and from the liveliest meadows to the most placid ponds, see the magnificent world of insects as you've never seen it before.
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What are critics saying?
100
San Francisco Chronicle by Peter Stack
An extraordinary entertainment that personalizes the world of insects and other invertebrates and leaves audiences with an itching conviction of the poetry of nature.
100
Chicago Sun-Times by Roger Ebert
The movie is a work of art and whimsy as much as one of science.
100
Film Threat by Rory L. Aronsky
Microcosmos is that rare film to lead us, to reiterate why the camera is just as important as the paintbrush, keyboard, pen, chunks of clay, and anything else that can be used to make art. This is art.
100
Christian Science Monitor by Staff (Not Credited)
Nothing short of amazing. [25 Oct 1996, p.13]
100
Chicago Tribune by Michael Wilmington
This astonishingly beautiful documentary employs microphotography of overpowering crispness and detail to create one of the most stunning records of nature the cinema has given us. [11 Oct 1996, p.J]
100
Boston Globe by Jay Carr
Microcosmos is a microspectacular. [08 Nov 1996, p.C6]
100
St. Louis Post-Dispatch by Staff (Not Credited)
A strange but compelling documentary. [08 Nov 1996, p.4E]
91
Entertainment Weekly by Owen Gleiberman
The revelation of Microcosmos isn’t just that the insect world has a complex and stirring order — it’s how close these bugs come to having minds.
88
San Francisco Examiner by Barbara Shulgasser
The movie is magnificent and stunning the way few spectator events are.
88
ReelViews by James Berardinelli
After watching Microcosmos, it will be impossible to take a walk in the woods without being aware of the amazing tapestry of activity going on all around, yet out of sight.
88
LarsenOnFilm by Josh Larsen
Scales glisten, legs scuttle, antennae unfurl, all in a symphony of exquisite shapes and inhuman motion. Watching the movie is like peering into a living kaleidoscope.
80
TV Guide Magazine
The spectacle is absolutely enthralling, and even a bit frightening.
80
Variety
A feature documentary about a day in the life of the bug universe, Microcosmos is a surprisingly entertaining, visually stunning treat.
78
Austin Chronicle by Russell Smith
Microcosmos is more about reverie than revelation. Still, don't be surprised if you come away from it with that feeling, like the aftermath of a deep, strange dream, that your consciousness has been enlarged in a subtle but very real way.
60
Chicago Reader by Jonathan Rosenbaum
The footage is often fascinating, but when it comes to anthropomorphism I prefer the Disney live-action adventures.
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