Microcosmos

Microcosmos is a wild, beautiful, fascinating, and at times horrific documentary that zooms in on the lives of insects. Using macroscopic photographic techniques, the filmmakers capture the intense minutae of these strange lives.

Visually stunning, the film depicts small and smaller creatures that in real life I would run far from. Looking at the intricacies of their bodies and the complexities of their actions, I felt like I had stepped into another universe.

Microcosmos is slow. There is very little narration and many scenes study movements of insects and flora in such steady detail that it can feel like nothing is happening. In fact, sometimes I couldn't tell what was actually going on. For instance, why was a beetle so diligently trying to move a tiny piece of earth? I wouldn't have minded watching this with a science teacher or someone more informed than me, to help fill in the gaps.