Wild North The Coast (2015) Online

Am a big fan of nature documentaries, especially the work of David Attenborough. Having been recommended 'Wild North' through fellow documentary fans, it was instantly put down on my list as a must see. Also heard nothing but praise for it, which has nearly always been a good sign, so that further sparked interest, as well as having loved a lot of the 'Wild...' series (and there have been many).

'Wild North' is an excellent series, actually feeling much more than just a documentary. Throughout it's fascinating and attention never wavers, and it is a shame that it's so overlooked and underseen. At its absolutely best one forgets they're watching a documentary and instead feeling like they're watching art. To me 'Wild North' is completely deserving of its praise, should have lasted longer than the mere three episodes it lasted.

Its first episode "The Coast" proves this.

Really not that much wrong here, just that there have been documentaries that have illuminated me a little more and explored its content a little more originally.

It is hard knowing when to start with the praise. "The Coast" for starters looks amazing, reasons enough to make book a trip to see the more naturalistic parts of Norway. It is gorgeously filmed, done in a completely fluid and natural, sometimes intimate (a great way of connecting even more with the animals and scenery), way and never looking static. In fact much of it is remarkably cinematic. The scenery and habitats are some of the most breath-taking personally seen anywhere, whether in visual media and real life. The rich colours just leap out and the scenery from this part of the world has rarely looked more beautiful and like characters of their very own. The music here is a remarkably good fit, throughout it not only complements the visuals but enhances them and there is an authentic flavour to it.

What of the narrative and information aspects? Can't fault "The Coast" in this aspect either. The narration has a great well-balanced mix of facts that will be familiar to the viewer and others that will induce the right amount of surprise. In short, it's just fascinating, informative and thoughtful with lots of insight, a tremendous respect for the subject and an intimate approach that works just right.

From start to finish, "The Coast" managed to intrigue and illuminate, and there is a freshness to the material, not feeling derivative of anything. The narration is delivered articulately, there's an enthusiasm and precision about the delivery and it never feels preachy and always lets the scenery and such speak for itself.

The wildlife themselves are a wonderful mix of the adorable and the dangerous, and one actually finds they're rooting for them in exactly the same way they would a human character. There is a good deal of suspense and emotional impact. There are some scenes where one is amazed that they managed to be filmed in the first place.

"The Coast" feels much more than an episode of a series and it doesn't feel episodic or repetitive. It feels like a story of its own, without being too reliant on that approach, with real, complex emotions and animal characters developed in a way a human character would in a film but does it better than several.

Overall, another excellent documentary series if not one of the very best. 9/10 Bethany Cox