Flock of Dodos: The Evolution-Intelligent Design Circus (2006)

Director:

Randy Olson

Writer:

Randy Olson (writer)

Genre:

Documentary

Tagline:

Evolutionary Ecologist, Randy Olson, tries to find out just who is the real "Flock of Dodos"

Plot:

Filmmaker and evolutionary biologist Randy Olson tries to figure out if it is the Darwinists or Intelligent Design supporters who will become a flock of dodos.

Plot Keywords:

Intelligent Design | Dodos | Evolution

Cast

Michael Behe	...	Intelligent Design Supporter (as Michael Behe Ph.D.)
John Calvert	...	Intelligent Design Supporter
Jack Cashill	...	Intelligent Design Supporter
Tom Givnish	...	Evolutionist
Randy Olson	...	Himself
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Erik Alden
Dr. David Bottjer	...	Evolutionist
Carol Brown
Jeff Brown
John L. Burch
Dr. John Angus Campbell	...	Intelligent Designer
Ty Carlisle
Dr. Steve Case	...	Evolutionist
Dr. Michael Donoghue	...	Evolutionist
Ron Etter	...	Evolutionist
Dr. Daphne Fautin	...	Evolutionist
Sue Gamble	...	Moderate Republican
Thomas Givnish	...	Evolutionist
Dr. James Handen	...	Evolutionist
Dr. William Harris	...	Intelligent Designer
Ed Leydecker
Dr. Karel Liem	...	Evolutionist
Dr. Donal Manahan	...	Evolutionist
Kathy Martin	...	Conservative Repbulican
Bob Muller	...	Evolutionist
Steven Orzack	...	Evolutionist
Dr. Jane Pickering	...	Evolutionist
Pastor Edward Rowand
Mark Skinner	...	Evolutionist
Bill Wagon	...	Democrat
Dr. Jonathan Wells	...	Intelligent Designer

MPAA:

Rated PG for some thematic elements and brief mild language.

Runtime:

84 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Sound Mix:

Stereo (RCA Sound System) | Dolby

Certification:

USA:PG

Filming Locations:

Dover, Pennsylvania, USA

Company:

Prairie Starfish Productions

I'd have a beer with Randy anytime! Even if he didn't ask a couple of obvious questions.

I enjoyed watching this documentary.

The filmmaker, Randy Olson, seems like a pretty down to earth kind of guy. His documentary, Flock of Dodos, could pretty much be summed up the same way.

I wouldn't consider myself to be in either the intelligent design or the evolutionists' camp. Honestly, I'm not even sure it really matters which camp a person finds themselves in when it comes to their spirituality. This brings me to my point: Randy, though I found his documentary enjoyable, failed to ask an obvious question that I feel strikes directly at the heart of the current debate. That question being - do the evolutionists that were seated around the poker table feel that the theory/fact that they have devoted their lives to leaves no place for a creator...no place for a designer? Though beyond the empirical realm, this question was never opened for consideration. Yes, the evolution guys attacked the credibility of the ID guys, but they were never directly asked about whether they felt that evolution and the possibility of design were mutually exclusive ideas.

Most of the educated ID guys didn't discount that evolution has occurred. They just seemed to discount the idea that it occurred unassisted. I would have liked to have heard some equally candid thoughts from the evolution camp about whether or not they felt that the theory/fact removes the possibility of a designer.

A side note: Several of the reviewers, who I assume fall into the ID camp, seemed to feel that Randy treated the ID side unfairly. Let me just say that I don't think that he did this on purpose. Randy, like the rest of us, is subject to the knowledge and experience in his possession. He has his own set of biases. When those biases go unchallenged it logically results in the appearance of bias, i.e. the faulty red state/blue state construct as well as other indications of bias that again are probably more the result of a lack of knowledge than a malicious attempt at arrogance. To me, at least, Randy seemed like a pretty open-minded sort of guy.

Just my two cents. Fun doc to watch.