Future: Humans

Future: Humans

2003, Science  -   68 Comments
5.80
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Ratings: 5.80/10 from 122 users.

Future: Humans holds nothing back as it begins in a fury of scientific fact and unhinged matter of fact attitude. As the documentary moves along, its style of storytelling feels similar to that of the History Channel mini-series Mankind: The Story of All of Us.

The difference being that while that mini-series shows us how humanity has always been similar to what it is today through the years, and has changed largely due to the use of new tools and technology combined with significant historical events (most of which became significant because of the advent and use of modern technologies such as gunpowder, and eventually guns), Future: Humans focuses on evolution, or more to the point conscious evolution, that continues still today.

Conscious evolution may seem like a new age theory but when you examine the facts you may have new questions as far as how in control we've been of our development, even if that control was only gained by coincidence. It is also worth noting that while the focus of this documentary is largely rooted in science as opposed to history, it follows things as linearly as possible, while effectively explaining why everything can't be conveniently explained in a timeline or family tree.

Also worth noting, is the fact that even though this documentary doesn't use history as a way of delving into our differences and establishing our significant similarities, it can't escape the dialogue that says all human beings will always be more similar than different, even in the confides of examining who we are solely through the genome.

The soundtrack to the film is jarring, and the visuals are consistently stimulating. The choice of narration however, is remarkably unstimulating in that the film's producers have obviously decided that the best way to go was with the typical science documentary style narrative voice and tone, free of diversion.

A variety of experts from Nobel Prize winners, to biologist provide their knowledge and opinion while delving into the questions posed in Future: Humans, and the film is surprisingly full of possibility, wonder, and inspiration, while also delivering perspective shaking but widely un-controversial facts of life that may cause discomfort for some just as much as it does inspiration for others. Either way you look at it, this documentary earns its keep when it comes to both entertainment and education value.

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Ken Kelly
Ken Kelly
1 year ago

I had to stop because the cinematography was very aggravating. Then I got busy repairing my bicycle and just listened. Even that was annoying.

john ledbury
john ledbury
3 years ago

it's very slow to get going and srgues in platitudes and truisms, not worth the time to watch

Tim
Tim
8 years ago

By the way, I just recently found out about Top Documentary Films and I absolutely love it!

Tim
Tim
8 years ago

I didn't read all the way to the bottom of the page but after getting half way down, I realized how much better the banter is here than on You Tube, despite a few venomous comments. It's good to hear that there are reasonably intelligent people commenting somewhere on the internet.

jacob
jacob
8 years ago

This is an amateur documentary, and I use the term amateur kindly. Visuals are terrible with random shots of clowns and mud covered faces, and even more terrible sounds (frightening and unsettling for no apparent reason). SO TRUE
There is a picture or video of a skull at least once per minute. whether the train of thought calls for it or not. There are random breaks in narration for long periods of time with eerie music and no content for up to a minute at a time. WASTE of time and bandwidth.

Marius Marisca
Marius Marisca
9 years ago

Please read this before watching. If you want to watch something intelligent don't bother.

This is an amateur documentary, and I use the term amateur kindly. Visuals are terrible with random shots of clowns and mud covered faces, and even more terrible sounds (frightening and unsettling for no apparent reason).

As far as the information and the way it goes about showcasing this information is just ridiculous. To illustrate my point just watch the last 5 minutes of the documentary when they are saying (without any scientific backup or actually being relevant to the previous 50 minutes of the documentary) that future humans or beings that might replace us might actually be cooked up in a laboratory somewhere and might even have telekinetic powers. TELEKINETIC POWERS!?! From a documentary about how humans might evolve? Pure and utter nonsense, and I say this in relation to what they were previously talking about for 50 minutes; that being a really badly presented history of human evolution from Homo Habilis to Homo Sapiens.

I would only recommend this as an example of how not to do a documentary.

I just wasted almost an hour of my life, that would have been better spent; even WIKIPEDIA is more informative than this.

Justine Vee
Justine Vee
9 years ago

I wish that the authors would state what they mean by "intelligent".

barbara Mcclatchie
barbara Mcclatchie
9 years ago

i have only this to say: we are not the only intelligent species, nor the only creatures with affect, nor the only who use tools and what we don't know far outweighs what we need to know . As for social intelligence? What other species spends a life time fighting or destroy inconvenient species? The writer is a pompous blind man

HYker
HYker
9 years ago

The first premise of this doc is that "we live in a world that is hostile to life' What a big error to start out on.

Karl Sultana
Karl Sultana
9 years ago

This should be called Past: Humans because it's about the past not the future. Especially with that thumbnail so misleading.

$138279268
$138279268
9 years ago

Fascinating to see how much we've grown and developed over the years.

serialteg
serialteg
9 years ago

"Humans are the only intelligent species on planet Earth" ...

At which point, I exited the documentary
Which is, if you're wondering, the very start of it lol

Kansas Devil
Kansas Devil
9 years ago

The problem with evolution is, it is such a grindingly slow process. The human brain simply can't evolve fast enough for our wants and needs.

Emily Rose
Emily Rose
9 years ago

At that time, the humanity will be at last stage.

Gigi Bardel
Gigi Bardel
9 years ago

people have never develop inteligence
they manage to create a stupid and primitive society
and they belive themselfs smart.

Gigi Bardel
Gigi Bardel
9 years ago

noboty talk about the biological factor of extiction.
biodeversity means life.
no biodiversity no life.
the only reason that life existed for so long was some species are rezilient to some bacterias and viruses.
bacterias and viruses adapt to.
and when it will be only one specie
bacterias and viruses will adapt to consume that specie
and there will be nobody rezilient
and evrybody will go extinct
even bacterias and viruses will eat echeader when they are the only ones left.

Gigi Bardel
Gigi Bardel
9 years ago

humanity will be at the edge of extiction in 2050

bluetortilla
bluetortilla
9 years ago

My sincere apologies for using all caps two days ago. I find ads very offensive.
The truth is, there may not be much to even talk about regarding evolution as we know it should our weapons technology lead us into nuclear holocaust and extinction. On the other hand, if we keep polluting our planet on the scale that we are we may end up not only with extremely decimated populations, but also massive plagues and famines so severe that technology may very well experience a breakdown. It is hard to imagine how the biological organisms of the earth with adapt to future pollutants alone, much less how climate change will affect us.
It is pollyannish to posit the choices here, that technology will evolve or biological evolution will continue, all things being equal. The fact is that either a massive global change will occur to arrest the global damage we are experiencing now or our inaction will have affects upon us biologically that we cannot even begin to guess at.
It is my opinion that without a doubt our consumerist societies, behavior and lifestyles- and its global spread- is pushing on this destruction at a mind-numbing pace. Ads and commercials fuel this ecologically destructive behavior and brainwash people into materialistic dissatisfaction. And THAT is why I complain so angrily about our documentaries being infested with ads. It is, as a matter of fact, extremely relative to our human future.

Patrick Adrien Varencaus
Patrick Adrien Varencaus
9 years ago

If evolution is right why are still monkey s around ? Did evolution stop working ? Lik if i dint know the answer ! lol !

ian
ian
9 years ago

You are all brain washed. Jesus created everything.

Danny
Danny
9 years ago

This was actually not bad. Better than expected.

~Oliver B Koslik Esq
~Oliver B Koslik Esq
9 years ago

Good Documentary!

+1 TDF!

zee788
zee788
9 years ago

Great. Another idiotic humanistic 'documentary.' When will you idiots, whether religious or secular, realize that life doesn't really have any value other than your own personal preference for it? Not surprising, though. What else do you expect from narcissists?