Mysteries of the Great Lakes (2008) User Reviews

Maybe an off-center title, but still a great documentary

[jvurban · 10/10 · 18 January 2016]

One viewer complained that this film has a tiny bit about the Great Lakes and a whole lot about restoring the sturgeon population. In actuality, the film provides an informative outline of the geological story of the formation and evolution of the Great Lakes, including how the overall flow of water actually reversed as the ancient ice masses receded. The graphics showing all this are impressive and fascinating. There is also much material about how human populations depend on the Lakes and how we first damaged them and now are learning to use them responsibly. Historic exploitation and near-eradication of the sturgeon and efforts to restore it are thus placed in the context of the whole history of the human relationship with these huge bodies of water. The sturgeon story provides a nice thread of continuity. And it gives me hope for the human race to see not only the fish biologists working with the sturgeon during spawning season but also the growing crowds of approving observers. At the narrative center is a biologist and a 120-year-old female sturgeon he has been following for years. At the end of the film -- but I won't spoil it. We saw the film with our 9- and 12-year-old grandkids and they loved it.

Should be named "Save the sturgeons!"

[Iluvcleanfunnymovies · 5/10 · 6 September 2020]

Documentary had very little to do with the entire Great Lakes as titled. Very misleading.. It was 95% focusing on the crisis of the sturgeons, whose populations are declining, While its not bad to focus on something that needs attention, the title is very misleading. The rest of the documentary, the filming was done very well. Trouble is I can hardly hear the narrator because the background music is so loud. What makes the problem worse is there's no closed captioning to help me understand the narrator. It's not that old! Now every movie or television show has closed captioning, as 80% of the population relies on close captioning. Why this documentary does not have captions? Thank you Canada public tv. The hard of hearing and deaf will never understand it. The problem this documentary raise affects everybody, so excluding anyone is simply negligent. Giving it 5/10 feels very generous.

Not what I expected

[GeneralTso728 · 1/10 · 12 November 2011]

First off this movie is not what you expect it to be. The title of very misleading.

The movie is called "Mysteries of the Great Lakes". You figure it discusses mysteries of the lakes, or some sort of animals, or you learn something about the lakes, but no. The film focuses no more than 5 minutes on the lakes themselves, and contains some brilliant photography of animals and ducks, etc. The rest of the 45 minutes revolves around a guy trying to protect sturgeon, some sort of endangered fish. It is a very misleading title.

Thank God I saw it for free. For those who have to pay, this is a movie to avoid.