Blu-Ray Review – Filmed in Supermarionation (2014)

Filmed in Supermarionation is a feature-length documentary on the work of Gerry Anderson from the 50s to the late 60s. His biggest successes were such iconic and impressive shows as Thunderbirds, Stingray and Captain Scarlett along with a host of others. Gerry Anderson sadly passed away a few years ago, but luckily there is plenty of archive footage and interviews with him so his presence isn’t missing.

This documentary tells in great detail the story of how Gerry got started in the 50s and how he never wanted to make “puppet shows” — but he ended up being offered them so he took them. He always wanted to be a feature film maker, and he eventually furfilled that dream with Journey to the Far Side of the Sun. However, despite his distain for puppets, he used them to created some of the most innovative and exciting television to ever be made. The cinematography and production design alone on the shows give the biggest Hollywood films a run for their money, and that was always his intent: bringing big budget production values to the small screen.

The documentary is extremely insightful even if a lot of information presented isn’t revelatory for long-term fans of Anderson’s works. It does, however, have tons of archive footage, new HD footage of the shows themselves and new film interviews with cast and crew. It goes into detail with the great successes like Thunderbirds, Supercar etc. but also is not afraid to talk about the failures, like The Secret Service and the Thunderbirds feature films. It does slightly gloss over the late 60s when they become increasingly unsuccessful, which is why Century 21 eventually shut down. I also found the newly filmed interludes with Lady Penelope and Parker unnecessary but I guess it’s nice for fans.

Overall it’s a rather FAB documentary on one of Britain’s most innovative filmmakers, one who inspired generations to come. The documentary is available in a few different versions, obviously Blu-ray and DVD. There is also a 2-disc Blu-Ray with includes a disc of newly remastered key episodes of the numerous shows and many extras for the documentary, such as more interviews, archive footage etc. It’s also available in a large limited box set with the book by Stephen La Rivére, more episodes on Blu-Ray, and a reprinted comic book, along with other goodies.

[rating=4]
Ian Schultz

Genre:Documentary, Television Distributor:Network Releasing BD/DVD Release Date:20th October 2014 (UK)Rating:PG Director: Stephen La Rivière Cast: Gerry Anderson, Silvia Anderson