Nefertiti Resurrected

Rating:
Summary: A letdown of sorts
Review: I saw this documentary when it originally aired on the Discovery Channel, and was more than a little disappointed. All the hype it got made me think they had FOUND Nefertiti, and that the discovery was the greatest thing since Tut himself. After spending two hours (excessive--it could have easily been one) waiting for the moment of groundbreaking acheivement--nothing more than speculation.

Essentially, there's a lady who claims to have found Nefertiti's remains stashed away in an out of the way place in the Valley of the Kings. The figure is deformed, the valuables gone, and only the damaged corpse remains, yet through various tests of sorts (which are very fascinating themselves), she is convinced that she has, indeed, found the lost queen. That's the claim, but it is really nothing more than speculation. There is some compelling evidence, sure, but nothing conclusive.

The sad thing is that several other major Egyptologists--the guy who found KV5 and the Egyptian in charge of approving digs in the Valley of the Kings--aren't convinced it's Nefertiti. It is possible that they don't want to admit that their work has been overshadowed, but I doubt that's the case. Essentially, this woman is convinced she's found Nefertiti, but she's about the only one convinced of that.

Again I have to say that this documentary was substantially less interesting than it was hyped up to be. It's a dig, maybe there's some cool stuff, that's it. Overall it was interesting, but certainly not worth owning unless you are into Egyptology in a big way. If you want a great documentary on recent finds, try Egypt: Beyond the Pyramids.

Rating:
Summary: A letdown of sorts
Review: I saw this documentary when it originally aired on the Discovery Channel, and was more than a little disappointed. All the hype it got made me think they had FOUND Nefertiti, and that the discovery was the greatest thing since Tut himself. After spending two hours (excessive--it could have easily been one) waiting for the moment of groundbreaking acheivement--nothing more than speculation.

Essentially, there's a lady who claims to have found Nefertiti's remains stashed away in an out of the way place in the Valley of the Kings. The figure is deformed, the valuables gone, and only the damaged corpse remains, yet through various tests of sorts (which are very fascinating themselves), she is convinced that she has, indeed, found the lost queen. That's the claim, but it is really nothing more than speculation. There is some compelling evidence, sure, but nothing conclusive.

The sad thing is that several other major Egyptologists--the guy who found KV5 and the Egyptian in charge of approving digs in the Valley of the Kings--aren't convinced it's Nefertiti. It is possible that they don't want to admit that their work has been overshadowed, but I doubt that's the case. Essentially, this woman is convinced she's found Nefertiti, but she's about the only one convinced of that.

Again I have to say that this documentary was substantially less interesting than it was hyped up to be. It's a dig, maybe there's some cool stuff, that's it. Overall it was interesting, but certainly not worth owning unless you are into Egyptology in a big way. If you want a great documentary on recent finds, try Egypt: Beyond the Pyramids.

Rating:
Summary: so so...
Review: I saw this on televison on the Discovery channel and was rather let down by it. It was so repetitive that they could have trimmed down the time from 2 hours to one hour

Rating:
Summary: Nefertiti Repetitive but Nevertheless Fascinating
Review: Nefertiti Resurrected was originally a Discovery Channel production, and shares common flaws with other of their works--primarily, a tendency toward padding and sensationalism. As these shows are originally intended for television, they are designed with commercial breaks every 10 to 15 minutes with lots of back announcing for those who came in late or who suffer severe short term memory loss. It's extemely annoying, and in a DVD might well drive the viewer mad. The repetition is so constant that a half an hour could easily be cut from the show, perhaps even more, with no loss of content.

But nonetheless, the content of this production is, for the most part, superior. Anthropologist Dr. Joann Fletcher's work is featured throughout, and I felt fairly convinced by her evidence. She discovered a mummy which she believes is Nefertiti, and whether or not you agree, the sorts of evidence she gathers is diverse and fascinating. One of the highlights is the reproduction of Nefertiti's face from the skull x-rays using current forensic techniques deployed today in identifying modern corpses. Discussions of Nefertiti's role in Egypt, as consort and eventual replacement of the Pharoh Akhenaten, and ultimately her downfall, are well done--the evidence is placed in meaningful historical context. That some Egyptologists are not convinced by Fletcher's claims is not surprising and it's unlikely that a definitive answer will ever be known, barring the discovery of a tomb labelled in hieroglyphics: Nefertiti's Buried Here. But that's not really the point. The search itself, the questions raised, the methods used and the historical context are well worth your attention if you have any interest in the subject at all. I've got to say, though, that the ending is totally hokey in the worst of New Age ways...

Rating:
Summary: Nefertiti Repetitive but Nevertheless Fascinating
Review: Nefertiti Resurrected was originally a Discovery Channel production, and shares common flaws with other of their works--primarily, a tendency toward padding and sensationalism. As these shows are originally intended for television, they are designed with commercial breaks every 10 to 15 minutes with lots of back announcing for those who came in late or who suffer severe short term memory loss. It's extemely annoying, and in a DVD might well drive the viewer mad. The repetition is so constant that a half an hour could easily be cut from the show, perhaps even more, with no loss of content.

But nonetheless, the content of this production is, for the most part, superior. Anthropologist Dr. Joann Fletcher's work is featured throughout, and I felt fairly convinced by her evidence. She discovered a mummy which she believes is Nefertiti, and whether or not you agree, the sorts of evidence she gathers is diverse and fascinating. One of the highlights is the reproduction of Nefertiti's face from the skull x-rays using current forensic techniques deployed today in identifying modern corpses. Discussions of Nefertiti's role in Egypt, as consort and eventual replacement of the Pharoh Akhenaten, and ultimately her downfall, are well done--the evidence is placed in meaningful historical context. That some Egyptologists are not convinced by Fletcher's claims is not surprising and it's unlikely that a definitive answer will ever be known, barring the discovery of a tomb labelled in hieroglyphics: Nefertiti's Buried Here. But that's not really the point. The search itself, the questions raised, the methods used and the historical context are well worth your attention if you have any interest in the subject at all. I've got to say, though, that the ending is totally hokey in the worst of New Age ways...