Product Details

• Format: Closed-captioned, Color, NTSC
• Rated: Unrated
• Studio: Pbs Home Video
• VHS Release Date: March 10, 2000
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B00000FAHN
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #168,151 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

43 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great for two reasons, August 26, 2006

By 

matt (the reading room) - See all my reviews

This review is from: David Macaulay: Cathedral [VHS] (VHS Tape)

This film is great for two reasons. Firstly, it is a very detailed account of the purpose and development of the cathedral based around the account of a fictional cathedral construction project complete with a very dated (but wonderful) cartoon, interspersed with current (1983) on location examinations of cathedrals. The viewer will certainly gain an understanding of the social, economic and religious contexts of cathedrals in a light-hearted, amiable documentary.

Secondly, this film's dated quality appeals greatly to my sense of nostalgia for my childhood. I was only 7 when I first saw "Cathedral" and it captivated my imagination with a sense of wonder about the days of old when monks and kings and maidens were not just the stuff of legend. It was the beginning of a lifetime's interest in the subjects of religion and medieval history. Everytime I watch it, I feel like I am reliving two histories- the days of the great cathedrals and my own childhood afternoons in the long and cold winters of Michigan. Everyone needs those touchstones that remind them of the past's magic and sense of wonder, and this film does that for me. Give it a shot. I think you'll like it.

25 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding, May 29, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: David Macaulay: Cathedral [VHS] (VHS Tape)

A wonderful and dramatic telling of the most famous French cathedrals of the Middle Ages. Not only do we learn about the marvels of this architecture in standard documentary style through David Macaulay's narration, but we are also treated to an animated story of the building of the fictional (but representative) Notra Dame de Beaulieu. Exceptional.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Edifying!, December 10, 2000

By 

W.Khan - See all my reviews

This review is from: David Macaulay: Cathedral [VHS] (VHS Tape)

Next to the Doric temple the structure that most ineffably captures the concept of "purity" is the Gothic cathedral .With their soaring spires and flying buttresses these Gothic marvels incarnate the eternal human yearning for the infinite and the undefinable .This video walks you through the layout of a Gothic cathedral : nave , transept, altar,chapels , the crypt etc. Most of these cathedrals were erected in the late 12th to mid 13th century AD (Chartres c.1194-1221 AD , Rheims c.1209-1290 AD, Amiens c.1219-1269 AD , Bourges c.1195-1255 AD, Notre Dame c.1152-1240 AD & Laon 1153-1223 AD ). To me these cathedrals represent the first stirrings of creative energy in medieval Europe after being shrouded in the Dark Ages for more than 700 years . This same energy and love of learning and adventure spills over into the Crusades and culminates in the Rennaissance .Finally I must mention the animations in this video which liven up some of the human interest stories that went into the construction of these cathedrals : they are cute but a bit overdone . I would have much preferred it if the narrators had spent the extra time going over the finer details of the statuary & architecture at these masterpieces i.e. the aristocratic figures that face the west portal at Chartres .