Flirting with Heights
A virtuoso wildlife film of natural life in the extreme altitudes of the French Alps.
Filmmaker Jean-Michel Bertrand spent five years in the high French Alps near his home to make the film Flirting with Heights. Most impressive is Bertrand's philosophy that this isolated wildlife remain undisturbed by his filming. He uses camouflaged tents and other devices to keep himself and his camera out of view. He stops eating when the grouse come out at dawn to flaunt their feathers. We get his funny anecdotes as well as the scenes which he films.
Nature films are often mundane and formulaic, but like the very best, Flirting with Heights is funny, intensely beautiful, full of wonder and surprise and awe. Bertrand's special obsession is with the golden eagle and after a number of years, he finds their hidden alpine nest in a location where he can film without disturbing the chicks. Here we see the eaglets grow, test their wings and eventually leave the nest on the wind. We also see the wild play of the mountain goats, the foraging of woodpeckers, the curiosity of marmots and the devotion of Bertrand, himself.
This is a film of unusual joy and beauty. Watch the trailer here. One more showing is on Thursday Oct 13th at 2:30 in the Granville 7.