National Geographic's Dinosaur Hunters: a Review
Phew, sorry for the hiatus. I didn't go to college after all - yet. I'm back! Got another obscure palaeo -documentary at hand!
No, this is not that book I reviewed despite the prescence of both the American Museum of Natural History and Mark Norrell, nor a documentary calledd The Dinosaur Hunters from 2002 about Gideon Mantell and other 1800's palaeontologists based off a book, nor the utterly terrible Discovery Reality series Dino Hunters. Sheesh, National Geographic's Dinosaur Hunters is such a generic title you need to specify what you mean everytime.
Anyway... Rather, it's the National Geographic documentary special from 1996, back before Nat Geo had its own channel and put out specials on other channels and VHS. It was made at the height of the Dinosaur Renaissance as new discoveries of theropods were coming out of Asia to reveal how birdlike and caring the smaller dinosaurs were rather then the lumbering idiots. That's what the doc is about: those very discoveries, specifically one made by Mark Norell and Mike Novacek. Yes, the doc also brings up Roy Chapman Andrews' own expedition. In fact, its a bit of a recurring plot thread, and to an extent the doc is about how the understanding of dinosaurs changed from the roaring 20's to the 90's over 70 years, away from the momstrous giants of the former and the succesful, amazing group of the latter and to this day.
Dinosaur Hunters covers the AMNH's expedition to the Gobi earlier in the decade and the reinterpretation of Oviraptor as a caring parent rather then an egg thief via new specimens they nicknamed "Romeo" and "Juliet", concluding with a CG sequence of their life and death via sandstorm burial. There isn't exactly a dense plot for me to discuss as in other documentaries, so I'll be briefer then normal here.
As mentioned above, the documentary's focal point is Oviraptor... or rather, the oviraptorid that five years later would be given its own genus name, Khaan, the only dinosaur genus that sounds like a William Shatner quote; this makes Dinosaur Hunters technically it's first appearence in visual palaeomedia. We see both CG restorations striped adult forms and an embryo still in the egg.
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The other dinosaurs in it are Protoceratops and an unidentified Ankylosaur, who appears in the CG segments, as well as the generiv claw. There is also a small mammal represented by an elephant shrew (at least I think it is - correct me on the species in the comments and when you share it elsewhere).
There is also a cheesy scene where the museum's T. rex skeleton comes to life briefly to watch the "Juliet" specimen being transported to preparation. I do like it, however, and it does seem to symbolise the bringing of new specimens to the old guard... though that maybe looking too much in that bit.
The visuals, done by 4:2:2 Videographic Design, are admittedly on the lesser side and aren't in the doc for long. The models are of the nekkid and shrinkwrapped kind, the ones on the bad end of the Paulian school of design. The Oviraptors in particular are overly slender and move stiffly. You can't even excuse the lack of any feathers, because there were restorations from even well before the doc's release.
Still, I give Dinosaur Hunters credit: the set sun in the CG sequences gives a primordial and ancient or even mystical feel, and the music (sone by The Insects, who I think are maent to be a band) also helps with that, as its good too. Even the low-grade CG does have its charm, especially one sequence representing Deep Time via a 24-hour clock; I'm a suck for that, reminding audiences humans are a very recent species in Earth's history.
The dig scenes themselves are decently-shot. While the humans aren't usually my favourite portion of docs like these. Mark Norrell and Mike are pretty good talking heads, ands watching the digging and fossil preparation with Amy Davidson can be fun. You feel the excitement and disappointment at each finding alike.
The narration by Michael Carroll (as written by Kage Kleiner) meanwhile is good, stately and serious and treating the subject with the reverence it deserves. I do object to the narration calling "Oviraptor" one of the stranger dinosaurs, however. Like no, the little beaked theropod is not strange by dinosaur standards; same goes for calling Protoceratops prey for Oviraptor. It was't at all: Oviraptor wasn't made to hunt large prey with beaks that could easily snap its limbs.
As for accuracy, things are exactly what you'd expect for the 90's. The Khaan in particular are also seen roosting on rocky outcrops, but such things weren't all that present in the Djadochta Formation. I might be wrong though, please correct me.
I do admit I wish the doc gave more screentime to the Mongolian Academy of Sciences' members on the expedition. They played an arguably even greater role in the expeditions and researching dinosaurs of the region, and even back then I think audiences of the less progressive decade would still accept the POV of them.
- Accuracy - 5/10
- Aging - 5/10
- Narration - 7/10
- Presentation - 8/10
- Visuals - 6/10
- Music - 8/10
- Rewatchability - 7/10
- Overall - 7/10
Dinosaur Hunters is not exactly the most memorable documentary produced by National Geographic, nor the best, but it's a nice slice of history of seeing the fossils we take for granted (like parental care and oviraptorids not being what people thought they were) being seen as the newest, most extraordinary fossil finds yet, and no doubt means much to those who grew up with it. Check it out at the tail end of say, a Nat Geo doc marathon or in the middle of your 90's palaeodoc marathon.
Thank you for reading this. I will be back with more in October. And just in time for Halloween, so yeah, I will be showing you something real scary! I promise!
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