Winged Migration

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Winged Migration

G

2003

1h 31m

Documentary

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

95%

Tomatometer

130 Reviews

88%

Popcornmeter

5,000+ Ratings

This documentary presents an epic portrait of winter bird migration. Filmed on all seven continents over four years, the footage is brought together into one portrait of a journey that's uniformly arduous for all kinds of different birds. Rather than concentrating on statistics and facts, the film near-wordlessly portrays the sheer physical effort demanded of the birds on their disparate routes. Along the way, we see the many dangers they face, from man-made waste to a group of hungry crabs.

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Critics Consensus

A marvel to watch.

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Nell Minow

Common Sense Media

Dec 29, 2010

4/5

As pretty and light as a feather on the wind.

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Steven D. Greydanus

Decent Films

Dec 26, 2003

A-

In the tradition of the also nearly wordless Atlantis and Microcosmos… educational voiceover narration is superfluous: It's enough simply to see.

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Jamie Russell

BBC.com

Aug 12, 2003

4/5

Winged Migration is a quite astounding feat of cinema.

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Jamie Gillies

Apollo Guide

Oct 17, 2009

80/100

Filmed with exceptional care and remarkable photographic ingenuity, no other nature documentary is as personal and as close-up as this one to the peculiarities of birds.

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Felix Vasquez Jr.

Cinema Crazed

Apr 29, 2009

Craftily edited and staged, but still works as an entertaining, and visually stunning documentary.

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Cole Smithey

ColeSmithey.com

Apr 19, 2009

B+

The Oscar-nominated "Winged Migration" is a virtuosi technical achievement in documentary filmmaking due to its astonishingly intimate photography of the migrations of numerous species of birds across the earth's northern and southern hemispheres.

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Robert P

@Superbad 6 days ago

Winged Migration is a 4.5 star Movie!

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Tara E.

@Italiana Nov 16, 2025

Beautiful. A tribute to our Creator.

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Apr 18, 2024

Still a very good documentary about one of the longest living animals on earth French director Jacques Perrin narrates the daily cycle of birds filmed on several continents around the world A bird's annual migration is a promise to fly and hopefully return home It's a fight for life and facing danger from bad weather to hunters to man-made waste to crabs Here we witness the sheer physical effort for different species of birds such as geese, ducks, herons to common miniature ones to fly away, lay their eggs, and come back Some birds fly night and day in order to make it towards their destination They have no barriers and get to travel all over yet they still have to be aware of many obstacles like predators or vehicles, sadly some of the birds will fall by the wayside It's also fascinating how certain species are built the way they walk, run, even perform mating rituals This documentary is beautifully filmed, nicely edited, gorgeous to look at, and it gives the viewer an insight of these animals' journey to travel the skies The music is also majestically composed and the aerial imagery is enough to make you believe you're flying with them Naturalists and documentary fans will love this The combination of soaring views and exotic locations make for quite a great-looking film Some parts hard to watch but worth the journey

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Connor S

@RT33873007 Feb 22, 2024

Breathtaking footage resulting in a magical story.

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Kyle M

@RT77296778 Oct 31, 2023

One of those documentaries that are just as fascinating and appealing as the subject, with this one being purely observant without any structured narrative resulting in beautiful photography giving a heightened experience to solidify the perfected approach. Based on its presentation, it was most likely a worthwhile theatrical experience – and maybe still is if rejuvenated projections allow the chance. (B+)

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Sep 1, 2018

spectacular footage!

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Jacques Perrin

Director

Jacques Perrin

Narrator

Jacques Cluzard

Co-Director

Michel Debats

Co-Director

Stéphane Durand

Writer

Jacques Perrin

Writer

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Synopsis

This documentary presents an epic portrait of winter bird migration. Filmed on all seven continents over four years, the footage is brought together into one portrait of a journey that's uniformly arduous for all kinds of different birds. Rather than concentrating on statistics and facts, the film near-wordlessly portrays the sheer physical effort demanded of the birds on their disparate routes. Along the way, we see the many dangers they face, from man-made waste to a group of hungry crabs.

Director: Jacques Perrin
Producer: Christophe Barratier, Jacques Perrin
Screenwriter: Stéphane Durand, Jacques Perrin, Francis Roux
Distributor: Sony Pictures Classics
Production Co: Bac Films
Rating: G
Genre: Documentary
Original Language: French (France)
Release Date (Theaters): Apr 18, 2003, Original
Release Date (Streaming): May 1, 2012
Box Office (Gross USA): $10.8M
Runtime: 1h 31m
Sound Mix: Dolby Stereo, Dolby Digital, Dolby A, Dolby SR
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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