Turtle: The Incredible Journey

Movie review by Sandie Angulo Chen, Common Sense Media
Turtle: The Incredible Journey Poster Image

Common Sense says

age 6+

Educational but slow docu may not keep kids' interest.

G 2011 80 minutes
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Parents say

age 7+

Based on 3 reviews

Kids say

age 5+

Based on 1 review

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A Lot or a Little?

The parents' guide to what's in this movie.

What Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that this nature documentary follows one little loggerhead turtle as she makes her arduous migratory journey across the Gulf Stream and around the North Atlantic. There's nothing particularly disturbing in the film, though one early scene does include a tense sequence in which the baby turtle attempts to reach the ocean despite threats from hungry crabs and predatory birds. Nothing ends up happening to "our" turtle, but we do learn how few of them actually make it to adulthood. This is the rare case of a movie being more educational than entertaining, and it might not hold young kids' interest for the complete runtime.

Community Reviews

fortheloveof
fortheloveof Adult
May 9, 2019
age 8+

great documentary for kids

I have shown this to my 6th grade classes for many years and have incorporated various science lessons with it. It's emotionally captivating, beautifully filmed, magically narrated by Miranda Richardson, and brings thoughtful and environmental topics to the table. Considering it's a nature documentary, it is not really too graphic. 5 stars.

This title has:

Great messages
Minime77
Minime77 Adult
June 16, 2014
age 4+

4 only watching with parent. Loved it, but only with watching it with parent, otherwise too much

Of course, parts are scary, I mean the dead turtle was scary, the dad seahorse and when the crap caught the baby turtles to eat them. I watched it with my 3 y old who loved it, but spoke the next day twice about the poor sea horse whos life ended being to close to the big ship. We watched it on the laptop, so the picture was smaller than on a tv and we talked a lot, as my lil one hardly speaks English, so I translated her a lot and we talked a lot about it, which made the movie softer (I didnt made up things as I thought to let her know the truth tho). We dont watch much tv, so it took us two evenings to watch it, but my 3,5 y old loved it and wanted to play the next day all the time being a baby turle coming out of her egg and someone else has to be a bird. But again, with understanding everything they say, on a big tv and alone, I wouldnt let a 3y old watch it. Btw, the most scary parts are really only the ones already mentioned, the last half is smoother, but still.
See all 3 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Narrated by Miranda Richardson, this wildlife documentary chronicles THE INCREDIBLE JOURNEY of the loggerhead turtle, from tiny hatchling to sea voyager to full adult who will make the return trip back to her ancestral home on the beaches on Florida. As viewers learn early on, only one in every 10,000 turtles will ever make it to adulthood; but against all odds, this "little turtle that could" weathers every potential threat -- other animals, cargo ships, hunger -- to undergo one of the animal kingdom's longest migrations.

Is It Any Good?

The visuals are beautiful, but the story feels about half an hour too long. And while the swelling score and intense voice over try to make every scene feel significant, unless you (or your kid) is a passionate turtle lover, you may begin to wonder where you've stashed your copy of March of the Penguins.

Filmmakers who direct animal documentaries must balance the need to show the natural world as it unfolds in front of the camera with the desire to create a more human-like drama for the sake of entertainment. Unfortunately, Turtle swings a little too far in the latter direction, with overwrought narration. There also isn't that much inherent tension. It's not that "our" turtle doesn't face any pulse-quickening moments, but after her initial race to the ocean, there's just not that much going on (and if she had been one of thousands of unlucky turtles, obviously there would be no story).

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about whether a nature documentary about an individual animal can be as interesting as a film that follows groups of the same animal or different species. Which do you prefer?

  • How do human actions affect the life of the loggerhead turtles? What can we do to minimize our impact on the sea?

  • What's the movie's environmental message? How does it appear in the film?

Movie Details

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