Reno Rangan The common tern we all have heard is 'made in china'. Thankfully, it is not about that cheap thing. It's about those beautiful, magnificent creatures born in those regions. Well, I've not seen many documentaries set in that place. So I was happy to watch it, but wasn't that excited as I do for any Disney films. It was the next destination for DisneyNature after venturing in Sri Lanka for 'Monkey Kingdom'. The tenth film. If you are a DisneyNature fan, brace yourself for the wild adventure.From the director of one of the most uneasy war films I've ever watched, 'The City of Life and Death'. That's the best, as well as the worst decision the DisneyNature had made. He's the best choice since the documentary is about china's wildlife. He knows his nation well than any western filmmakers. The production quality was top notch. But he did not understand the DisneyNature's way of filmmaking, if this film is not only made for Chinese audience.Apart from those, it was quite an enjoyable flick. Little fun in the parts, as well as gets emotional towards the ending. From cranes to giant panda, monkeys, snow leopard and Tibetan antelope, the narration divides four ways. For every few minutes focusing on these creatures' families, the film reveals the story of their young ones from birth to growing to adult. Like how their mother dedicates to raise them, and the lessons they learn from their clan, as well as their own from their instinct. Then final the storytelling comes to halt when those youngsters set to begin their next stage of life.❝The joy a mother receives from raising a cub from birth, however... is worth a thousand farewells.❞First of all, you must understand the DisneyNature production type. If you know, well, that's good. But if you don't, then know that its products are targeted for little kids. Not like BBC, Nat Geo or any other nature documentaries that expose only reality. Here they identify the character and give a name, then create a story around it in the post production, that's similar to the human's for the kids to understand it better. Especially the harsh parts are trimmed out. Like Disney's fairy-tale, only you are going to witness them in the nature version without magics.I'm an adult, and I think it was an okay film. Not because what I stated in the previous paragraph, but I've been following DisneyNature films since its inception and this could be the least best one. I said the least best, not the worst. Tell me who would hate Disney films for being soft and touchy! Yep, only the grown ups do.Visually extraordinary, but not the story they have added to it. Narrated by John Krasinki. He did a good job as what they have told him to do. Though my issue is they were lying about everything. I don't think that's what the children should be learning. So on that perspective, this film is not for anyone above 9 years of age, otherwise it will be mislead. I prefer to show them BBC nature documentaries instead. Nonetheless, it is worth a watch once.7/10

capone666 Born in ChinaGirls born in China know that they will grow up in a safe, white American suburb.Unfortunately, as this documentary verifies, the same doesn't apply to every female species in China.A single-mother snow leopard struggles to find nourishment for her young in China's merciless mountain region. Meanwhile in the jungle, the birth of a female golden snub-nosed monkey forces a neglected male to venture out on his own. Also leaving the nest is a giant panda whose mother is having a hard time letting her go.Narrated by John Krasinski, Disney's latest nature documentary once again does an excellent job of capturing rare fauna in their native environments. Unfortunately, like the others in the eco-series, this maternal endeavour is also heavily edited to fit a desired narrative while the animals are given human characteristics.By making the pandas human, however, just makes eating ginger beef that much more difficult. Yellow Lightvidiotreviews.blogspot.ca

wallybax-89511 Decided to see this film after seeing clips on TV. I have been a fan of this kind of movie ever since Disney did them back in the 19 60's This film touched the kind of life led by several species of animals. My wife and I were moved and thrilled to be able to watch the excellent photography and hear the technicians explain what happened in the various situations. We heartily recommend this film to anyone (any age) who is able to focus for approximately 90 minutes.

MaximumMadness The real shame with Disney's nature documentary "Born in China" is that the potential was there for a remarkable film. The imagery captured of both the landscapes and of the beautiful and elusive animals on which it is centered is completely awe-inspiring and never less than completely engrossing and compelling. And it tells the oft-poignant story of what it is like for families and packs of animals in the vast reaches of China, including adorable pandas and stunning snow leopards. Unfortunately, the film's failing is a complete and utter lack of any real substance or information regarding these subjects, which is instead traded for often contrived schmaltz and "jokey" narration. For all it does right with the stunning visuals... all else seems forced and a tad bit trite.The footage itself is incredible. Especially when viewed on the big screen. Director Lu Chuan and his team of cinematographers and cameramen truly do capture some compelling and beautiful looks into the lives of these animals, and it's a pleasure seeing what it's like for them as they struggle to thrive and survive over the course of just over a year. The most outstanding of course being the snow leopard referred to as "Dawa" and her cups, simply because they are such stunning creatures and they face the most adversity and tragedy throughout the film. Chuan and the rest of the crew feverishly document these wonderful creatures to the greatest of extents.The problem is that through editing and over-written narration delivered by comedic actor John Krasinski, the entire message seems a bit undermined. I know that it wouldn't work for some, but in my mind, simply showing the footage over music or with only minimal information carefully doled out through brief bits of narration would have worked best. But you get the feeling that Disney's nature department felt they needed to add more of a "message" to the film, and it feels tacky and silly. The film starts out promising with some actual key information about China and a pleasant explanation of the symbology involving cranes taking flight... but it quickly becomes an "Ohh, so cutesy!" affair with Krasinski "speaking" for the animals and inserting odd random jokes while never doling out more than the most basic and bland of facts. This was an opportunity for education, but instead it places too much focus on talking about how much animal-mommies love their animal-babies, and throwing in some really odd references to appease the young children in the audience. (The film likes to constantly remind us that it refers to a clan of Snub-Nose monkeys as the "Lost Boys" about once every 30 seconds in certain scenes.) It's borderline condescending. I remember when I was a child watching nature documentaries in school or on television... I wanted to learn. This film instead feels the need to talk down.Still, I can't say that this fact ruined the film as a whole. Because it didn't. There's still so much to take in through the 76- minute run-time that I'd definitely give it a mild recommendation, especially to families with young children or general nature enthusiasts. While critical facts are few and far in-between and the over-done narration does drag it down a bit, the footage enclosed is constantly and consistently enthralling and exquisitely captured. And it did save the film for me, and make it an enjoyable watch as an entire cumulative experience. Seeing pandas, snub-nosed monkeys and of course the snow leopards in their natural habitats, living and breathing is just too magical to dismiss over my squabbles with the production.I give it a slightly above average 6 out of 10. It could have been better, but there's still just enough to make it worth a watch at least once.