Microcosm – Le peuple de l’herbe (1996)

Directed by: Claude Nuridsany, Marie Pérennou | 75 minutes | documentary

Insects, most people hate them. They tickle, sting or buzz annoyingly around your ears. Anyone who finds insects a nuisance should check out ‘Microcosmos – La peuple de l’ herbe’ (‘Microcosmos, the Grass People’, 1996). French wildlife filmmakers Claude Nuridsany and Marie Perennou wanted to show the insect world from its most interesting – and intimate – side and spent three years creating the most detailed microscopic camera. Their efforts pay off, because ‘Microcosmos’ is an exceptional film, showing the insect kingdom as it has never before appeared on screen. A documentary that does not so much explain the creatures in the world beneath our feet, but rather lets the images speak for themselves according to the ‘show, don’t tell’ principle. The result is a fascinating film in which insects are literally touched during their everyday activities.

Nuridsany and Perennou pretend to have followed the insects in a remote French meadow for a day, from dawn to dusk. In reality, they’ve been working on the project for years, staging most of the clips and using different ‘actors’, but that shouldn’t spoil the fun. Just like people, insects also start their day with awakening, in this case that often means coming to life, leaving the safe cocoon and going out into the wide world. Then we get to see the insects during the various ‘day tasks’ they have. Processionary caterpillars ‘haggle’, whether or not in a straight line. Zipping is often unavoidable. A ladybug has the greatest possible difficulty passing another on a branch. Ants are working hard to get the anthill up to full strength and bees fly from flower to flower for nectar. Comical is the fumbling of a dung beetle, who diligently tries to roll his ‘loot’ up a hill, but has to start all over again. Impressive is the spider that ruthlessly throws itself on its prey. And what about the downpour that really messes up life in and around the pasture; for the insects, the drops arrive like meteorites. The final scene, in which we see a crane fly being ‘born’, is also a highlight.

The fact that the images are often staged does not detract from their beauty. Even people who have a great aversion to insects will be impressed. It’s only up close to see how wonderful and luxuriant these creatures really are: the bizarre gait of caterpillars and centipedes, for example, or the clumsy fluttering of a ladybug, which looks like it wasn’t made for flying at all. You cannot name all insects directly. Only in the credits are all ‘actors’ mentioned by name. While most nature documentaries are accompanied by accompanying commentary, the spoken word in ‘Microcosmos’ is limited to two short sentences at the beginning of the film. Let the images speak for themselves. On the one hand, that’s refreshing – you can’t get annoyed with the omniscient narrator who just can’t keep his mouth shut. But this approach also has drawbacks: as soon as you see an insect in action, questions arise in your mind. What insect is this, what is it doing, why is it doing that? You often don’t get an answer to questions, unless it ultimately has to speak from the images. The lack of commentary is partly compensated by a wonderful soundtrack, which contains not only (classical) music but also the necessary appropriate sound effects.

In addition to the lack of information, there is another aspect that somewhat opposes ‘Microcosmos’: there is not really a common thread in this documentary. The images seem to have been randomly stitched together, so that there is no narrative structure and therefore no tension. The film does not manage to hold the attention sufficiently for the entire 75 minutes. For that you have to be able to offer more than beautiful and unique images of often artfully dressed insects. Lovers of nature documentaries will love these beautifully shot images, but the neutral film buff needs more to convince him. Conclusion: beautifully made nature film about an often underappreciated but fascinating ‘family’ of our animal kingdom, which unfortunately lacks the necessary structure. A good movie that could have been even better.