GALAPAGOS-LAND OF REAL LIFE MONSTERS

IMAX is pumping out feature films for it's huge screens which now also show a variety of 3D films. If you haven't seen ENCOUNTERS IN THE THIRD DIMENSION, rush out and see it before it goes away for good. It will rock your world, as they say. While the newest feature, GALAPAGOS, is also 3D, it is reality based, not SGI based, and therefore the effects are not as spectacular. But the film is no less entertaining, as it takes you to the Darwinian islands off the coast of Ecuador, and you feel as if you are crawling among the iguanas, or swimming with hammerhead sharks..

Indeed most of the interesting action takes place below the ocean, as we travel with Dr. CAROLE BALDWIN on her expedition to continue the work of CHARLES DARWIN, the father of natural selection theory. The film weaves a delicate balance between science project and popcorn munching fun, which is a refreshing change from most of the mindless entertainment Hollywood tosses up for consumption. And there is the 3D. Some scenes you hardly notice the effect, but others put you square in the middle of the action. It is terrific.


There are some monstrous creatures that are scooped up from the deep, including one at the end of the film that must have been the creative inspiration for ALIEN. Real life creatures are always more interesting than plastic movie monsters. And GALAPAGOS gives us all an opportunity to visit a sanctuary of real life monsters, without ever leaving the comforts of a 100 foot screen in an IMAX theater. The film opens November 12, 1999. Go see it, and don't forget ENCOUNTERS IN THE THIRD DIMENSION while you are there. It is awesome!