Synopsis
Very high in the sky, the red-breasted geese fly over an Eastern country, some industrial zone polluted, deserted, depressing. In the meantime, hundreds of swallows wait on telephone wires, ready for departure. The camera crosses France meeting wood-pigeons flying over a dense city traffic. Notre-Dame de Paris lurks in the distance.The Canada geese glide over New-York. The wood-pigeons, after hundreds of miles, arrive at the foot of the Pyrenees mountains, exhausted. They can hardly fly over the lower cols and are easy preys to the hunter's nets.
Far above the clouded summits of the Himalayas, bar-headed geese are sailing in a freezing cold and reduced oxygen. A company of cranes fly over the Himalayan valleys. At night, the geese stop on a frozen lake. An avalanche terrifies the birds that take off suddenly.
Aerial currents bring storks and buzzards effortlessly on their long migration route. Swept along in the same upward airlock, kites and western honey-buzzards soar towards Morocco and Africa.
The swallows brave the Mediterranean Sea. On the watch, falcons are waiting for their exhausted victims. The swallows have to skim the sea risking to be drowned. The storks cross over burning deserts. At night, they rest by an oasis. In the morning one of them will be found dead. But the survivors will reach the tropical paradise after having braved mythical trials. They will meet all sorts of extravagant-looking birds, such as flamingos, pelicans, jacanas.
Yet, the paradise becomes drier and drier. Cacatoes flutter above a water spot. The crickets and the drought make the place completely inhospitable for the birds. Suddenly, a front of flames rushes forward. A black dark smoke cloud will soon encounter the water-filled monsoon clouds that will bring life back.
In the tropical forest, sudden downpours resound. It creates a deafening noise. A real flood takes place, followed by calm and serenity. Birds wake up and, crescendo, a concert of screams and tunes invade the landscape. A toucan and a bird of paradise dance and parade. A stunning show!
After having flown over Patagonia, the black-necked swans fly over limitless meadows where the albatross nest. With the wandering albatross, we'll discover the severe, rough lands lost in the middle of boundless oceans, beaten by winds and waves. Through the tempest, a majestic albatross soars over the Roaring 50th, brushing monstrous crests. Enormous blue and white icebergs appear on the sea. A hole in the ice-floe: Suddenly a penguin jumps out and lands on the ice, followed by other penguins doing the same gym. A procession of penguins progressing through the Blizzard to the horizon. A polar night illuminated with an enchanting display of dawn lights will help us make a transition with the final shots of the return to France and to the little robin seen at the beginning of the film.
A year will have passed: a journey through time, seasons, infinite distances. Another vision of our planet. Another experience of the world. A new wisdom.
