SEA MONSTERS: A PREHISTORIC ADVENTURE — *** — Large-screen documentary about prehistoric sea creatures; not rated, probable PG (violence); Clark Planetarium; Thanksgiving Point
The dramatic mix of fossil digging and computer-animated dinosaurs is getting to be an IMAX cliche.
What makes "Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure" stand out from the pack is its eye-popping visuals.
Here 82 million-year-old animals come to life, their long snouts poking into the audience with near-perfect clarity.
"Sea Monsters" is based on a "National Geographic" photo spread that took a fanciful look at what prehistoric sea creatures might look like. The movie simply makes them move, using the cutest of the specimens, the dolphin-like Dolichorhynchops (Dolly for short), as a tour guide.
We follow one such Dolly through her life cycle, including the loss of her mother and brother to predators like the whale-sized Tylosaurus. When one threatens, the movie cuts dramatically to live-action footage of paleontologists digging up fossils over the past century.
This latest IMAX offering is actually showing in two formats. I have seen them both.
And while it's easy enough to get immersed in the action on a regular IMAX screen, the movie is infinitely more effective in the 3D version.
"Sea Monsters: A Prehistoric Adventure" is not rated but would probably receive a PG for scenes of animals eating animals. Running time: 40 minutes.