A Charming, Wondrous Journey
Adapted from the book of the same name, Here We Are: Notes For Living On Planet Earth is a charming, wondrous journey into the marvels of our planet. With a beautiful aesthetic, some genuinely heartwarming and humorous moments and chock full of interesting facts, Here We Are is one of Apple TV+’s best offerings and a faithful adaptation of the book. The story revolves around a family, and more specifically inquisitive child Finn. Determined to find out how everything works, a family outing one day sees them end up at the mysterious Museum Of Everything. There, they find a fantastical Earth exhibit and with it, a celebratory deep dive into just how amazing our planet is. While the film is primarily designed for kids, the 35 minute length and abundance of interesting facts and figures makes it accessible to all ages. It helps that the charming humour counteracts the sheer wealth of facts nicely and it’s hard not to come away from this one without a warm, fuzzy feeling inside. The film is incredibly faithful to the book too, using the same distinct aesthetic, attempting to mirror that hand-drawn style in CGI. It works for the most part too, and the various scenes feel ripped right from the book, capturing that same wondrous and knowledgeable tone that makes the paperback (or hardback!) such an accessible and wonderful book. The audio is just as endearing here too, with a great orchestral score underlying a lot of the material. The overarching idea that knowledge is power is an incredibly important theme that a lot of people should carry through life with them. Our planet is an incredible, exciting and unpredictable place but time is finite. Here We Are captures all of this in a beautifully written, wonderful short film that’s essential viewing for kids and well worth the trip for adults too. It’s the film equivalent of a hot cup of cocoa on a cold, rainy day and what better way to enjoy it than tucked up with the family at home.
