The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill (2003)

User Rating:

7.9/10   

Director:

Judy Irving

Release Date:

22 September 2005 (Australia)

Genre:

Documentary

Tagline:

The true story of a bohemian St Francis and his remarkable relationship with a flock of wild red and green parrots

Plot:

A homeless musician finds meaning to his life when he starts a friendship with dozens of parrots.

Plot Keywords:

Parrot | Musician | Bird | Hawk | Death Of Pet

Awards:

1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Mark Bittner

...

Himself

Runtime:

83 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Australia:G | UK:U | USA:G

Filming Locations:

San Francisco, California, USA

Company:

Pelican Media

Soundtrack:

Peace of Mind

Beautiful & Entertaining

This is a little gem of a movie that deftly combines beautiful photography with an touching story line that gains depth as the movie progresses. The comic acting of the parrots and Mark Bittners amusing narrative keep the film from total chickflickness. Fun and touching, what more do you want. And, oh yeah, it's non-fiction. Great ending!

I guess the only film that comes to mind to compare it to is Winged Migration, a big hit film (for an indy) about birds. Parrots has some great footage of the birds in question, but none of that flying with the flock sensation thatt Winged had. But what Parrots has, of course, is humanity. The relation of Mark to the birds is central to the films arc. The film also addresses the issue of humanities impact on the environment and the natural vs unnatural setting for the parrots.

Ultimately it decides, and I agree, we've changed the environment of urban areas irretrievably so let's not pretend otherwise.