Review: The Mysterious Islands

The Mysterious Islands, released by Provident Films, opens with breathtaking cinematic images filled with unique species of animals rarely seen by the greater population. The over arching story unfolds with Doug Phillips taking his son on a trip of a lifetime to the Galapagos Islands. Doug’s goal for this unique father/son journey was to share the incredible creation of God in the same place where Charles Darwin birthed his ideas of evolution.

The historical moments in the film, designed to illuminate the background of Darwin’s Origin of Species publication, was portrayed in a very plausible and artistic manner. Rather than feeling like the moments were overt lessons, I found myself drawn into the humanity of the choices Darwin made based on his predisposition and family background. Even more enlightening were the views of Darwin’s Captain during the five-year expedition – How he came to the exact opposite conclusion after witnessing the same details.

A team of experts including noted researcher Dr. John Morris joined Doug and his son Joshua. Together they reasoned through numerous issues of evolution and creation. Discussions of DNA and standard scientific dating methods brought clarity that quickly dispelled the concepts of evolution between species and the age of earth.

The film explores numerous wild life including the Blue-Footed Booby, Galapagos Tortoise, Flightless Cormorant, and Marine Iguana. The footage captured of these creatures in their natural habitat was awe-inspiring. Amazing photos were inter-cut with fabulous live footage revealing remarkable movements and behaviors. My favorite was the Blue-Footed Booby soaring through the sky and suddenly diving into the water for its food.

The vast majority of the film held my attention with great interest and gave me the sense that I was a part of the expedition. The exceptions were what seemed to be a couple of forced home schooling moments in the middle of a great documentary. The scenes actually changed the pace and feel of the film.

Since my viewpoint of this documentary was high over all, I’ve decided to give away a free copy of the DVD. If you’re interested, please write a comment on my blog or Facebook page telling me why you’d like to win the DVD and tell at least two people about CJ’s Corner, located at http://cjpowersonline.com. I’ll pick a winner on September 30^th and drop the new DVD in the mail.

I received this DVD free from Provident Films as part of their marketing program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”