Directed by Mark Lewis • 2000 • United States
While most know chicken as a dinner-plate staple, few pause to consider this bird’s many virtues. In this fascinating and gently comic documentary, director Mark Lewis delves into the under-recognized complexities of this seemingly simple animal. Through interviews with those who have formed unique bonds with chickens and narrative vignettes depicting the birds at their magical best, Lewis allows us to rethink our relationship to a creature we have previously taken for granted, while at the same time providing a lens through which we can view ourselves anew.
Up Next in Surreal Nature Films
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The Sea Horse
Directed by Jean Painlevé • 1933 • France
Jean Painlevé’s classic underwater short THE SEA HORSE uses dreamlike imagery to detail the lives of the titular upright-swimming creatures.
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The Vampire
Directed by Jean Painlevé • 1945 • France
Jean Painlevé’s short THE VAMPIRE draws the connection between the movie monsters of the same name and the South American vampire bat. The animal’s gruesome feeding habits are on full display.
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How Some Jellyfish Are Born
Directed by Jean Painlevé • 1960 • France
Through a combination of underwater, time-lapse, and microscopic photography, Jean Painlevé creates a beautiful study of the reproduction cycle of jellyfish.
