Discovery Atlas: China Revealed [HD DVD]

Director: Cassian Harrison
Actor: James Spader
Studio: Discovery Channel
Category: DVD

List Price: $24.99
Buy New: $18.99
You Save: $6.00 (24%)


New (1) Used (5) from $10.95

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars 8 reviews
Sales Rank: 61734

Format: Color, Widescreen
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Media: HD DVD
Region: 0
Aspect Ratio: 1.77:1
Number Of Discs: 1
Running Time: 102 Minutes
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6

MPN: DIS3867HD
UPC: 014381386745
EAN: 0014381386745
ASIN: B000JRYP1E

Theatrical Release Date: 2006
Release Date: January 30, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Discovery Atlas: China Revealed [HD DVD]

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Customer Reviews

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3 out of 5 stars Outstanding    October 29, 2008
James D. Teakles
This is an outstanding video, I seen it on TV a few years back and wanted to show my wife how the West views China. Impressive.

It would of been nice if in the description that the HD video is only playable on HD DVD players.


5 out of 5 stars Life Behind the Great Wall    July 27, 2008
Loyd E. Eskildson (Phoenix, AZ.)
"China Revealed" follows several individual Chinese as the oldest continuous civilization on earth transitions into a leadership position. Its 1.3 billion people are expected to become the next superpower, and the world's largest economy within twenty years. All despite being comprised by over 50 different peoples and 7 major languages, fortunately united by the common ability to read and write Chinese.

Viewers begin by seeing incredibly terraced 8 century-old rice fields in a mountainous region, and learn that less than 10% of China is arable (large desert and mountain areas). The "good news" is that peasant income has increased 1,500% since they were given control of their lands in 1978.

Urban residents, however, have fared even better. Shanghai is 8X the size of NYC, with 20 million inhabitants, vs. NYC's 8 million. One new immigrant from the rural areas is followed as he works long hours cleaning skyscraper windows and saves his money for his family back home.

"China Revealed" also follows a 12-year-old girl selected for training in gymnastics beginning at age two (6 hours/day for six days/week), a young female computer worker who undertakes cosmetic surgery to improve her chances of promotion, Inner Mongolians following traditional ways while worrying about change, and a rural female police chief who has risen above traditional Chinese sexism.

Overall, "China Revealed" is an impressive depiction of an impressive people moving forward.


3 out of 5 stars AN INSIDE LOOK AT CHINA POST MAO    May 27, 2008
D. Casey (US)
The videography, the production values, and the mellow tones of James Spader, and the HD DVD itself are excellent, but that's it. Call this educational if you want, but its more about polishing up the image of China for the 2008 Summer Olympic Games. This documentary reveals startling facts about China as being the world's most consuming nation of raw materials on earth simply because its 1,300,000,000 people have gotten a taste of capitalism and they like it. It features video of a country that for a long time was synonomous with Communist tyranny. Even though the Chinese have made great strides in improving their lifestyles since the Red Guard plundered through the countryside trying to strip away everything cultural and uniquely Chinese, there is still much oppression. Just look at the recent political unrest regarding Tibet. This documentary highlights different families in the "new" China and how they fit in with the rest of the world. I think the producers at the Discovery Channel were sincere in their efforts to present an unbiased look at China, but they look at it with a different set of eyes than I do. I for one thing think that Chinese manufactured goods, while they may be cheap, are substandard and in some cases, dangerous. I still look at the Chinese government as being typical for communist countries, and cannot be trusted. While the Chinese people now have more economic freedom and more opportunities, they are not free, no matter how pretty they try to package it. Dan Casey


4 out of 5 stars Not bad    December 1, 2007
MwAvE (KS)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

Overall not bad. But not much scenery of the China's. There are stories about different people. Wished it had more native sceneries.


2 out of 5 stars Disappointing    September 17, 2007
Reyhook (Virginia)
2 out of 2 found this review helpful

I was expecting a little better production than this. With the vast area that is encompassed by China, with its ancient culture and history; one would have anticipated more coverage of that rather than the excessive coverage of the country yokel who seeks his fortune in the big city and the young female olympic hopeful. Also, I have to agree with the other reviewer about the quality of the picture. Perhaps after watching Planet Earth I'm a bit spoiled; but I didn't think this dvd deserved to be advertised as high definition .
Finally, I wouldn't purchase this dvd if given the chance to do it over again.