Product: National Geographic - Africa [VHS] (2001)
Rating: 5.0
An accurate portrait of Africa today
When this series first aired on PBS in America, I was on the slopes of Mt Kilimanjaro in Tanzania climbing to the summit. After spending three weeks in East Africa I was very anxious to watch this series and purchased it upon returning home. I wanted to see how close did it come to representing the Africa that I had just experienced. Did it ignore social issues one experiences when visiting Africa? Would it just serve as PR for people to go on safaris and visit tourist sites in Africa? I was not disappointed. This series is a fantastic portrait of Africa today. It does a great job telling the story of how people live their daily lives and the challenges they face today and likely will in the future. The natural beauty and wildlife of Africa are stunning, and this series brings it all into your living room. When I was there I witnessed deforestation first-hand and saw how the natural world is in direct competition with the human world for resources. This series doesn't gloss over these kinds of issues. The music and production of the series are first rate, I also bought the soundtrack CD. If you want to see what Africa today is really like, watch this series.