Common Sense Media Review
By Jennifer Green
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Peril, accidents, death in extreme sport docu with language.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 15+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
Fly
What's the Story?
National Geographic documentary FLY profiles six people dedicated to the sport of flying via base jumping and wingsuiting. They're interviewed over the course of several years, and couples meet and fall in love, people die practicing the sport, and others are injured. The film has significant footage of and from their flights.
Is It Any Good?
The tagline on this film reads, "Live. Love. Jump." and that's exactly the story this haunting documentary tells. With impressive access to its handful of extreme-sport enthusiasts, Fly offers an insider's view of a small community of high-risk base and wingsuit jumpers from around the world. Over the course of several years' worth of interviews, the filmmakers go inside people's homes and get intimate with their lives to understand why they risk those lives to jump and, well, fly. They're able to offer quite a lot of personal detail to tell the stories of three couples' lives and passions.
The spectacular GoPro and drone footage (the film premiered on IMAX) underscores both the beauty and the risk. One of the six people profiled dies, and another breaks her back. Yet they and their partners say it's all worth it, and they get back out to carry on even after these accidents, describing flying and base jumping as a "religious experience." A memorable scene splices together images of a woman floating in an indoor flying simulator while her boyfriend is wingsuit flying in China, all set to operatic music. One admits it's a selfish pursuit: "You get in when you don't have much to lose." But they're following their dreams, and they explain this quite convincingly to the camera, even from beyond the grave.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the "airsports" profiled in Fly. Would you consider trying them? Why, or why not?
What are the different motivations the people interviewed have for participating in this sport and risking their lives? How would you describe the pull to fly?
One athlete's mom says that even though she worries about her son, she sees that he's living his dreams and, she adds, "I'd like a little piece of that." Can you relate to what she's saying?
Does the film do a good job weaving together footage from jumps and flights with the personal lives of the participants? Did the film lag at any points?
Movie Details
- On DVD or streaming : September 24, 2024
- Cast : Marta Emirotti , James Pouchert , Scotty Bob Morgan
- Directors : Christina Clusiau , Shaul Schwarz
- Inclusion Information : Female Movie Director(s)
- Studio : Disney+
- Genre : Documentary
- Topics : Adventures , Friendship
- Run time : 110 minutes
- MPAA rating :
- MPAA explanation : language and brief full nudity
- Last updated : September 18, 2025
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