encounters at the end of the world

from encountersfilm.com

Werner Herzog's new film from Antarctica is stunningly beautiful.

There is extensive footage under the ice of the creatures who live in the Ross Sea, clam-like creatures hopping across the sea floor, jelly fish who drift and dance elegantly. The seals make eerie and beautiful sounds underwater as they communicate with each other. The underwater microphones recorded it, and people were laying on the ice with their ears pressed downward listening through the ice.

listen, and here, and here.

I want to find the kind of long recording they were playing in the film.

The creatures who live above the ice include the seals lolling in the sun, mothers and pups cuddling, scientists and travelers who ran out of places to go and penguins. Now and then a penguin becomes "disoriented" and starts running inland, away from the colony, away from the water and food. Human policy is not to mess with the animals beyond gathering data, so off one poor soul went, headed for the mountains. The penguin scientist said that even if you brought that penguin back to the colony, it would take off running toward the mountains again. The international travelers included a lot of nomadic "computer specialists," one of whom drove to Africa in a garbage truck, a philosopher-fork lift operator (imagine my envy), and a filmmaker-cook explaining the importance to McMurdoo Station of the Frosty Boy ice cream machine.

Did I forget to say that it is also a very funny film?

from encountersfilm.com

The Antarctic scientists seemed to be in accord that humans will soon kill themselves off and/or nature will simply expel them as unsuitable. I believe them, but I wonder when?