Review of Cave of Forgotten Dreams (2010) by Paul W — 14 Dec 2011

I didn't know until just now, looking at the reviews, that this documentary movie was released in 3D. I watched it at home in 2D (albeit high def) and was blown away. It must have been something in the theaters in 3D! I'm not sure if it's the cave art itself or the directorial skill of Werner Herzog that makes me feel such a sense of wonder and discovery, but that sense is almost overwhelming.

We have always been told that recorded history started around 6,000 years ago. Herzog shows us recorded history, in the form of realistic cave paintings done by human beings essentially the same as you and me, dating as far back as 32,000 years ago.

The paintings in the recently-discovered Chauvet Cave were created over a 5,000 year span, and depict the animals that roamed what is now France: bison, lions, bears, wooly mammoths, and horses ... and part of a human female.

You simply can't not be fascinated by the paintings, and the care with which archeologists and anthropoligists are studying and protecting them. This is a must-see movie, every bit as exciting as the latest thriller.