Portrait Of Africa; Portrait Of England

Set to the music of Vangelis, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, and Miriam Makeba, Portrait of Africa is a glorious aural and visual feast which beautifully explores the wedding of music and imagery. From the wildlife of Tanzania's sweeping Serengeti plain to Kenya's island of Lamu, we see the peoples and animals of Africa engaged in a number of interesting daily activities: hippos bathing, women carrying bananas, huge flocks of birds taking wing in unison, a man at a sewing machine, etc. The choice of musical selections that accompany the visuals are excellent: from Vangelis' hauntingly beautiful "L'Enfants" (better known as the love theme from The Year of Living Dangerously) to Ladysmith Black Mambazo's tribal harmonizing, and Miriam Makebo's lovely solo vocals. Using a variety of video techniques (time-lapse photography, aerial moving shots, and close-up slow-motion), Portrait of Africa captures the mysterious ambience of the vast dark continent, in a non-narrative fashion that, nevertheless, tells many stories. Portrait of England, on the other hand, is flat and lifeless by comparison. Green and brown seem to be the primary colors on the visual palette, as endless tracking shots of green fields, green forests, green meadows, and brown houses are set to the music of virtuoso classical/jazz trumpeter Wynton Marsalis' interpretations of baroque pieces by Vivaldi, Handel, and Pachelbel. A handful of country home and castle interiors are seen, as well as a few gardens-but aerial shots of verdant green landscapes, and close-ups of green grass in green fields seem to dominate the video. Also, unlike the Africa video, most of the shots are of inanimate objects (no animals, no people). Portrait of Africa is highly recommended, but Portrait of England is not a necessary purchase. (Available from most distributors.)