Surviving Paradise: A Family Tale

Surviving Paradise: A Family Tale is a film that fulfils so many different purposes for the curious viewer. It succeeds as a gorgeous nature documentary in the vein of David Attenborough’s work, an alarming view of the climate crisis in the context of the depreciating environmental conditions of the Kalahari desert (which include lengthy droughts, famine and farming), and an unexpected ASMR experience, courtesy of narration provided by Regé-Jean Page, with his velvet larynx.

Soothing voice aside, the Bridgerton star’s delivery of information and context is every bit as effective as Attenborough in orienting us in a world we don’t closely know. The centre here is the vast African savanna, where the viewer connects to the diverse range of wildlife that inhabits it while it’s still possible. It’s a mode of storytelling that the directors, Renée Godfrey and Matt Meech, know very well, having cut their teeth on similar works – in fact, the latter served as an editor of the second instalments of Blue Planet and Planet Earth, which equally expressed meaning through eye-wateringly beautiful observations of natural life and animal behaviour.

With their rich cinematic resources, the filmmakers capture and craft a magnificent kaleidoscope of images across the plains of the Okavango delta, showcasing a beauty under threat of an exacerbated dry season, whilst also homing in on the domesticity of big cats, giraffes and other resident creatures. It all circles back to the importance of family (hence the title) and a circular process of survival. Sometimes the film wavers as it tries to focus on both the macro and the micro – there are multiple ideas within the fields of animal biology, sustainability and global warming here that really could be their own documentaries – but, ultimately, it’s a wondrous and moving impression of an arid ecosystem that should be protected at all costs. 

Musanna Ahmed

Surviving Paradise: A Family Tale is released on Netflix on 4^th March 2022.

Watch the trailer for Surviving Paradise: A Family Tale here: