Under the Sea

State-of-the-art high-definition IMAX cameras go under the waves of the southwest Pacific Ocean for this portrait of marine life in the Coral Triangle, diving into the tropical waters surrounding the Great Barrier Reef and other realms. Like many IMAX productions, Under the Sea is less of a traditional documentary than a visual pageant of strange and alien undersea creatures hunting, scavenging, and floating across the screen in sharp, bright clarity. Jim Carrey narrates as if reading a storybook, tossing out odd factual tidbits about the curious creatures between cautionary warnings concerning dying reefs and marine extinctions. It's an odd conundrum that the technically superior IMAX film technology is so often used to produce blandly conventional documentaries, and director Howard Hall's Under the Sea is unfortunately one of the most rudimentary of efforts, far less informative or involving than BBC natural history titles like Planet Earth or The Blue Planet. Ultimately, the value here lies in the vivid imagery of the fascinating creatures on display, turning viewers' TVs into home aquariums. DVD extras include a “making-of” featurette. An optional purchase. Aud: C, P. (S. Axmaker)