Disney True Life Adventure chronicles the lives of plants and animals using special photography techniques. We watch plants grow through time lapse and we see animals do their things thanks to micro photography and special cameras. Its pure eye candy. To be sure you can see similar stuff on cable TV's Animal Planet or the Discovery Channel, but there is still something neat about seeing the "hidden" world of nature right before you that never gets dull. Lets face it, in the 50 years since this film was first released we still haven't stopped marveling at ants up close, fish shooting their prey, and the motion of stationary plants. The photography here is incredible and in most cases hasn't been improved upon despite five decades of technological improvements. No matter how jaded a nature documentary snob you think you are, odds are you'll find something here to make you go "Oh Wow". Granted the film isn't perfect. The opening sequence about geology isn't all that great (I'm guessing its there just to book end the film with the volcano at the end) and the narration leaves a great deal to be desired, but it doesn't matter since the animals and plants in motion are enough to over come the poor extras. Absolutely worth a look for anyone who likes nature.
6 Reviews
Shocked and in love...
RosanaBotafogo17 July 2021
Enchanting, the detail about the life of bees and ants (especially that of sugar ants) perfect images, zoom with unimaginable details, passionate, and the importance of these little animals... Magnanimously perfect nature... Insects feeding, to the sound of the sonorous tila , captivating... Completely awed by the insects' intelligence, it can't be just instinct, wow... Shocked and in love...
Life secrets worth uncovering
TheLittleSongbird15 November 2021
Between 1948 and 1960, Disney made fourteen nature documentary films, seven of them short subjects and seven of them full length and all narrated by Winston Hibler. Starting with 'Seal Island' and ending with 'Jungle Cat'. This series was called True Life Adventures, seen as a big fan of Disney and nature documentaries and after wanting to see some older nature documentaries. The True Life Adventures series is a more than worthwhile one and of consistently high quality (especially the short subjects) and do prefer all of them over most of the recent years DisneyNature films.
1956's 'Secrets of Life' is the fourth of the feature films and is another very good one. Whether it is one of the best of the series' feature films is debatable, the subject matter is not one of the series' most appealing conceptually and there are not as many memorable scenes in my view as some of the other films in the series. It is one of the better looking ones, is one of the more illuminating ones and is actually more serious than most films in the True Life Adventures series, so all those ticks a few more boxes.
'Secrets of Life' perhaps could have been longer, personally do think that some of the geology could have gone into more depth. While it is more serious than some of the series' other films, some overdone jokiness can occasionally be heard.
Also did not find the opening sequence all that interesting and it didn't seem unnecessary.
It looks absolutely beautiful however, with very vivid photography capturing the majestic beauty yet at times uncompromising cruelty of the scenery. Especially when underwater, underwater always looks incredible in documentaries and it has held up beautifully here. The music has energy and atmosphere, not spilling out the emotions too much.
Much is informative here, 'Secrets of Life' is one of the ones where a lot of information was pretty new to me and any familiar material felt fresh. The subject matter is not one of the more appealing ones of the series in my view, but when it comes to learning of insects and underground this was the most illuminating documentary seen since David Attenborough's 'Life in the Undergrowth' (released a lot later but seen first). All the underwater sequences captivate and educate and in regard to the more biological elements this viewer learnt a lot more from 'Secrets of Life' than any of her school biology classes. The ant battle is one of the more hard hitting sequences of the series.
The narration entertains and teaches very well on the whole and although there is some jokiness here it's not as much as some of the other True Life Adventures outings. Winston Hibler's delivery is good natured and at times deadpan without being inappropriately so.
Overall, very good. 8/10.
1956's 'Secrets of Life' is the fourth of the feature films and is another very good one. Whether it is one of the best of the series' feature films is debatable, the subject matter is not one of the series' most appealing conceptually and there are not as many memorable scenes in my view as some of the other films in the series. It is one of the better looking ones, is one of the more illuminating ones and is actually more serious than most films in the True Life Adventures series, so all those ticks a few more boxes.
'Secrets of Life' perhaps could have been longer, personally do think that some of the geology could have gone into more depth. While it is more serious than some of the series' other films, some overdone jokiness can occasionally be heard.
Also did not find the opening sequence all that interesting and it didn't seem unnecessary.
It looks absolutely beautiful however, with very vivid photography capturing the majestic beauty yet at times uncompromising cruelty of the scenery. Especially when underwater, underwater always looks incredible in documentaries and it has held up beautifully here. The music has energy and atmosphere, not spilling out the emotions too much.
Much is informative here, 'Secrets of Life' is one of the ones where a lot of information was pretty new to me and any familiar material felt fresh. The subject matter is not one of the more appealing ones of the series in my view, but when it comes to learning of insects and underground this was the most illuminating documentary seen since David Attenborough's 'Life in the Undergrowth' (released a lot later but seen first). All the underwater sequences captivate and educate and in regard to the more biological elements this viewer learnt a lot more from 'Secrets of Life' than any of her school biology classes. The ant battle is one of the more hard hitting sequences of the series.
The narration entertains and teaches very well on the whole and although there is some jokiness here it's not as much as some of the other True Life Adventures outings. Winston Hibler's delivery is good natured and at times deadpan without being inappropriately so.
Overall, very good. 8/10.
First Rate Disney Nature Documentary
Ron Oliver9 June 2000
A Walt Disney TRUE-LIFE ADVENTURE Feature. Ants, bizarre ocean dwellers & the remarkable history of the honeybee are among the SECRETS OF LIFE revealed in this splendid documentary. Time-lapse photography is highlighted in a fascinating bloom bolero' sequence. The film ends with eye-popping views of volcanoes. `This is an authentic story of nature's secret world...of her strange and intricate designs for survival...and her many methods of perpetuating life. The intimate and unusual scenes were made possible through the development of new photographic techniques...and through the skill and patience of many scientist-photographers.' Winston Hibler is the narrator.
probably saw this as a kid in school
SnoopyStyle3 October 2016
I don't know when I first saw this Disney documentary. I certainly remember seeing some of the time-lapse photography of plants and the closeup insect footage although it's possible that Disney repurposed them in later movies. It's very probable that I saw this in grade school.
The movie starts with a bit of animation about the birth of the world and animations form breaks between sections of the movie. The time-lapse photography is memorable. The seeds moving around is a wonder every time. The montage is beautiful. Winston Hibler's narration is old timey. The close up footage of insects are amazing. This is an early nature film from Disney. It is truly the wonderful world of Disney. This is definitely educational but also beautiful to behold. The ants battle is gruesome. There is no Disneyfying the dog eat dog nature of the world. It is eat or be eaten. This movie doesn't shy away.
The movie starts with a bit of animation about the birth of the world and animations form breaks between sections of the movie. The time-lapse photography is memorable. The seeds moving around is a wonder every time. The montage is beautiful. Winston Hibler's narration is old timey. The close up footage of insects are amazing. This is an early nature film from Disney. It is truly the wonderful world of Disney. This is definitely educational but also beautiful to behold. The ants battle is gruesome. There is no Disneyfying the dog eat dog nature of the world. It is eat or be eaten. This movie doesn't shy away.
Making biology interesting again!
mark.waltz21 June 2018
Warning: Spoilers
Anyone of a certain age can certainly recall being dropped off at the movies or gathered together on a Sunday evening at 7:00 to watch "Disney" on NBC TV, and often, they would show one of these engaging documentaries that got children interested in the world around them. I recall sitting in the theater watching "The Living Desert" years ago and then later seeing it on TV, and the thrill it gave me. As an adult, I was upset by the lack of these types of films, although "Animals are Beautiful People" is one that came out that was worth seeing over and over again. On home video, many of these films made their way out, and the most recent of these that caught my attention was Warner Brothers' 1954 3-D "Animal World" that gave a quick overview of the history of evolution and how animals and man came to be based on scientific research, in a way that made it both educational and fun, and certainly films that in the right schools can be shown today to engage the students to want to learn more.
This rather short documentary doesn't overstay its welcome, but I would certainly have welcomed another 10-20 minutes based on how entertained and interested I was in the areas this did cover, mainly the insect world and the goings on in the bottom of the beautiful briny sea. Using a combination of animation and live action footage (sped up through photographic special effects), the audience gets to see the worlds of vegetation, how alive and animal like they almost are, moving much slower than insects, but often seeming to be much more than just your every day ordinary plant. This shows the various vegetations at their stages of life, showing how forest fires can actually bring about new life, how seedlings move to create new plants and trees, and the impact of natural events on everything around them. The world of the insects are fascinating, from the bees who instinctively know exactly what their life will consist of and how to go about it, to the ants who become very territorial, even facing a large snake like worm that invades their lair. Along with the underwater segment, these scenes almost make these creatures to become monster like, something which obviously influenced film makers of the 1950's with the enormous number of "creature features" that came out during this time. I hope never to come across the notorious "cobra plant" that attracts bees and never lets them out, although a bee eating its way out of a closing flower at night is fascinating to watch in the sped up motion of the photography.
Under the water, there are some other deliciously monster like animals: fish who use a worm like appendage to fool unsuspecting passerby smaller fish (swallowing them whole then burbing after gorging), fish who spawn on the beach and must get back into the water before the tide goes away, male crabs with one huge claw used to attract a mate, and the decorator crab who pulls leaves off of ocean vegetation to disguise itself in order to catch a meal. The funniest is the footage of the spitting fish who shoots water from underneath the ocean at insects resting above then gobbles em' up the minute they hit the water. This shows how entire continents are changed simply through evolution, the impact of volcanoes and how nature often will re-invent itself, yet how much it will stay the same. That makes this fascinating viewing for "children of every age". It is an absolute must see, one that will keep your kids or students transfixed and want to see more of these true-life adventures that stand the test of time more than 60 years after being made. Unlike Godzilla or other movie monsters, these aren't men in rubber suits: these are the real deal.
This rather short documentary doesn't overstay its welcome, but I would certainly have welcomed another 10-20 minutes based on how entertained and interested I was in the areas this did cover, mainly the insect world and the goings on in the bottom of the beautiful briny sea. Using a combination of animation and live action footage (sped up through photographic special effects), the audience gets to see the worlds of vegetation, how alive and animal like they almost are, moving much slower than insects, but often seeming to be much more than just your every day ordinary plant. This shows the various vegetations at their stages of life, showing how forest fires can actually bring about new life, how seedlings move to create new plants and trees, and the impact of natural events on everything around them. The world of the insects are fascinating, from the bees who instinctively know exactly what their life will consist of and how to go about it, to the ants who become very territorial, even facing a large snake like worm that invades their lair. Along with the underwater segment, these scenes almost make these creatures to become monster like, something which obviously influenced film makers of the 1950's with the enormous number of "creature features" that came out during this time. I hope never to come across the notorious "cobra plant" that attracts bees and never lets them out, although a bee eating its way out of a closing flower at night is fascinating to watch in the sped up motion of the photography.
Under the water, there are some other deliciously monster like animals: fish who use a worm like appendage to fool unsuspecting passerby smaller fish (swallowing them whole then burbing after gorging), fish who spawn on the beach and must get back into the water before the tide goes away, male crabs with one huge claw used to attract a mate, and the decorator crab who pulls leaves off of ocean vegetation to disguise itself in order to catch a meal. The funniest is the footage of the spitting fish who shoots water from underneath the ocean at insects resting above then gobbles em' up the minute they hit the water. This shows how entire continents are changed simply through evolution, the impact of volcanoes and how nature often will re-invent itself, yet how much it will stay the same. That makes this fascinating viewing for "children of every age". It is an absolute must see, one that will keep your kids or students transfixed and want to see more of these true-life adventures that stand the test of time more than 60 years after being made. Unlike Godzilla or other movie monsters, these aren't men in rubber suits: these are the real deal.
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