Amazon.com
From its beginnings deep in Africa's rain-forested mountains to its desert delta, which splits Cairo before spilling into the Mediterranean, the world's longest river takes a momentous journey through wildly diverse peoples, landscapes, and histories. Often using dress as a metaphor, this thorough three-part video series spends three hours focusing primarily on the cultural contrasts of the populations sustained by the 4,132-mile ribbon of water that traverses about a 10th of the African continent. The first episode,
The Wild River, starts at the river's headwaters, where isolated mountain tribes live unclothed, simply and self-sufficiently. Next,
White Nile, Blue Nile takes a look at the White Nile in the Sudan, where Nuba tribes must submit to Muslim rule requiring the wearing of shorts or jail time. Meanwhile, along its Ethiopian counterpart, the Blue Nile, descendants of the first Christians, the Copts, and the dominant Muslims both wear long flowing robes. And finally,
Egyptian Journey takes us to the Nile's end in the cosmopolitan city of Cairo, where Western dress mixes with more traditional wear. Food, work, and religious practices and celebrations share the video trio's focus, along with a good dose of historical context. That means expansive footage of temples and pyramids, statues and hieroglyphics, particularly in the Egyptian episode. Although no one is interviewed, narrator Alan Hill often withdraws, allowing the viewer time alone with the sounds and sights of the Nile's people.
--Kimberly Heinrichs
