Dinosaur 13
| Dinosaur 13 | |
|---|---|
 Sundance Film poster | |
| Directed by | Todd Douglas Miller |
| Produced by | Todd Douglas Miller |
| Music by | Matt Morton |
| Cinematography | Thomas Petersen |
| Edited by | Todd Douglas Miller |
Production company |
Statement Pictures |
| Distributed by |
CNN Films Lionsgate |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 100 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Dinosaur 13 is a 2014 American documentary film directed and produced by Todd Douglas Miller.[1] The film premiered in competition category of U.S. Documentary Competition program at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival on January 16, 2014.[2][3]
After its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival, CNN Films and Lionsgate acquired distribution rights of the film.[4][5]
Plot
The film depicts the event of 1990, when American paleontologist Pete Larson and his team discovered the largest and most complete Tyrannosaurus rex ever found (nicknamed "Sue") while digging in the badlands of South Dakota. However the skeleton was seized from Larson by the federal government, followed by a ten-year-long battle with the FBI, the National Park Service, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and Maurice Williams, the landowner on whose property the bones were discovered. Pete Larson also spent 18 months in prison.[6]
Reception
The film received positive response from critics. Dennis Harvey in his review for Variety said that "Todd Douglas Miller's engrossing documentary covers the triumphant discovery - and government seizure - of the world's largest, most complete T-Rex skeleton."[7] Duane Byrge of The Hollywood Reporter gave the film positive review and said that it involves a "story of scientific discovery and petty politics."[8] Eric Kohn from Indiewire in his review said that "A subset of the recent scientific-documentary-as-thriller tradition epitomized by The Cove and Blackfish, Todd Douglas Miller's Dinosaur 13 is both awe-inspiring and tragic."[9]
After the film aired, The Society of Vertebrate Paleontology, a society of professional academic paleontologists, issued a statement of full support for legally protecting fossils on public land and criticized Dinosaur 13 for implying that government regulations impede paleontological science.[10]
References
- ↑ "2014 Sundance Docs in Focus: DINOSAUR 13". Retrieved 8 April 2014.
- ↑ "Sundance Preview: 'Dinosaur 13' Poster Digs Up a T. rex (Exclusive Image)". Retrieved 8 April 2014.
- ↑ "Sundance 2014: U.S. Documentary Competition". Retrieved 8 April 2014.
- ↑ "Sundance 2014: 'Dinosaur 13' doc acquired by Lionsgate, CNN Films". Retrieved 8 April 2014.
- ↑ "CNN Films and Lionsgate Acquire T-Rex Documentary 'Dinosaur 13' Out of Sundance". Retrieved 8 April 2014.
- ↑ "Sundance 2014: The making of 'Dinosaur 13' [Video]". Retrieved 8 April 2014.
- ↑ "Sundance Film Review: ‘Dinosaur 13’". Retrieved 8 April 2014.
- ↑ "Dinosaur 13: Sundance Review". Retrieved 8 April 2014.
- ↑ "Sundance Review: 'Dinosaur 13' Salutes the World’s Greatest T-Rex Skeleton and Mourns the Fate of Its Discoverers". Retrieved 8 April 2014.
- ↑ "SVP Official Response to Dinosaur 13". Retrieved 15 December 2014.