7.3/10
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37 user 41 critic

Powaqqatsi (1988)

G | | Documentary , Music | 30 September 1988 (Denmark)
Powaqqatsi Poster
An exploration of technologically developing nations and the effect the transition to Western-style modernization has had on them.

Director:

Godfrey Reggio

Writers:

Godfrey Reggio, Ken Richards

Stars:

Christie Brinkley, David Brinkley, Pope John Paul II | See full cast & crew »
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Cast

Credited cast:
Christie Brinkley ... (archive footage)
David Brinkley ... (archive footage)
Pope John Paul II ... (archive footage)
Dan Rather ... (archive footage)
Cheryl Tiegs ... (archive footage)
See full cast »
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Storyline

An exploration of technologically developing nations and the effect the transition to Western-style modernization has had on them.

Plot Summary | Add Synopsis

Plot Keywords:

industrialization | nature | poverty | experimental film | second part | See All (33) »

Taglines:

Life in Transformation

Genres:

Documentary | Music

Certificate:

G | See all certifications »

Parents Guide:

View content advisory »
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Details

Official Sites:

Official Site

Country:

USA

Language:

Hopi | English | Spanish

Release Date:

30 September 1988 (Denmark) See more »

Also Known As:

Northsouth: Life on the Edge See more »

Filming Locations:

Kaiser-Wilhelm-Gedächtniskirche, Berlin, Germany See more »
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Box Office

Budget:

$2,500,000 (estimated)

Gross USA:

$589,244
See more on IMDbPro »

Company Credits

Production Co:

Golan-Globus Productions,NorthSouth,Santa Fe Institute for Regional Education See more »
Show more on IMDbPro »

Technical Specs

Runtime:

Sound Mix:

Dolby SR

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1
See full technical specs »
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Did You Know?

Trivia

One of the last films to be produced by Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus's Cannon group, a film company generally not noted for its highbrow output. See more »

Connections

Referenced in Bodies, Rest & Motion (1993) See more »

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: What does Powaqqatsi mean?
See more »

User Reviews

 
rebuttal of other viewers comments
23 March 2002 | by atheisticmystic – See all my reviews

Indeed! I do not agree that Powaqqatsi is a cheap imitation or second to Koyaanisqatsi. In fact, when I first viewed it, I was overcome with the feeling that this would be the film I would show to an invading Alien strike-force to convince them that humanity is a truly beautiful thing and must be spared. Philip Glass' soundtrack is again an immaculate one, and the marriage of Reggio/Glass devastatingly effective. There are images and transitions in this film that will stay with me forever. Haunting, beautiful, hypnotic, ecstatic. I challenge anyone claiming dissastisfaction with this film to explain how the "cover" sequence of the boy being devoured by smoke leaves the viewer so ( or the reflection of city lights in the rear window of the moving car, or the grain threshing sequence...). This film is another masterpiece, period.
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