Customer Reviews

Ancient Aliens: History Channel

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Hello.

Listen. you probably saw a show called "Ancient Aliens" on The History Channel recently and thought it was cool, so you wanted to buy the DVD. Well, I was the same way. BUT, this isn't it! I bought this DVD and it's OLD. It just has the same name as the other one that was more recent. The one you want is also called "Ancient Aliens" but it hasn't come out yet. Check the History Channels website and do a search there. The cover you want has a silver UFO and a crop circle animal looking thing. I just want to save people from doing what I did.

One of the things that makes life so wonderful is the human mind. And it's ability to ponder questions such as those presented in this documentary. Did ancient aliens visit the earth during biblical--even PRE-biblical times? Why is it that every culture seems to have drawings or stories of saucer shaped objects being viewed in the skies? You cannot say that it was thanks to the media or conversations about the phenomena--because neither television, radio, or telephones existed at the time. There certainly are some very valid points made in this (and similar) documentaries on the subject, and this reviewer happens to believe that 'Ancient Astronauts' DID indeed visit our planet...and continue to do so. This doc is a bit older--it is NOT the 2009 program recently aired on The History Channel. That dvd IS now also available for those interested. Though not as terribly dated as 'Chariots Of The Gods' (which explored this subject matter well over 20 years ago), it does not have the 'slick look' and production values of the aforementioned (2009) doc of the same name. One reviewer (Mr. Mingo) mentions the lack of female and other 'ethnic' (I hope that term is not offensive to some) interviewees...but my question to him is--So WHAT? Does everyone nowadays have to be a 'Politically Correct' EXTREMIST??? Should we stop watching some of the films produced in the 50's, 60's, and 70's just because the majority of the cast were caucasion? I can totally appreciate the wide variety of nationalities when it comes to today's productions. It certainly adds to the realism. But to bring up a point such as this (no females or non-caucasions in the production) in a review is just downright SILLY and smacks of self-righteousness. The bottom line is this is an intelligent, well-done, thought provoking doc. Whether or not aliens visited (or continue to visit) our planet is for YOU to decide!

There was a previously released documentary, under the A&E label, titled "UFO's-The First Encounters"(still available) which is the exact same documentary with one notable difference. Leonard Nimoy narrates the A&E version while the History Channel version (Ancient Aliens) is narrated by someone else (I believe it's the same person who does many History channel docs). Given the choice I'll take the Leonard Nimoy version everytime. Add the confusion with the triple use of the title "Ancient Aliens" for 3 completely different History Channel DVD's and this becomes an entirely useless release. Ancient Mysteries: UFOs - The First Encounters

This reminds me of a similar documentary in which it was asked, "Why is it that all over the world and in many time periods, people have myths or stories about dragons?" This work asks, "People from centuries ago and in very diverse cultures have all seen saucers or unfamiliar circles in the sky.

I love when modern phenomenon are given a history. It legitimates things. I saw a work on Alzheimer's that asked if Shakespeare mentions its traits in one of its plays. Some ask if Abe Lincoln had what we now call Marfan's syndrome. There's a documentary on cataracts that establishes itself by first asking if Manet (or was it Monet?) suffered from the eye malady. In one of Maury Povich's "baby daddy" episodes, he showed an example of heteropaternal hyperfecundity. I read an article that said the Ancient Greeks even knew about such a happening. This documentary taps into that same legitimizing process.

It states many of the standard points. We still don't know how humans made the pyramids, so did they get extraterrestial assistance? In South America, there's that man shaved into a field. Was it a welcoming sign to aliens? This work asks if aliens come up in the Bible. Just as some devout people resent Darwinism, some may resent this discussion. Still, it remains a legitimate question to pose and ponder.

Wearing my gender studies cap, it did stand out to me that all the interviewees here were male (and white now that I think about it). A female narrator reads some of the ancient passages. Still, I wonder about the homogeneity here. The work tacitly gives the suggestion that only the aforementioned group is concerned about alien visits, and that's so not true. The work interviews both skeptics and believers, so viewers across the debate will feel represented.