Darwin’s dangerous ideas on film

I WAS disappointed to learn from Scott Johnson's review of Creation that the film "focuses on Darwin's family life almost to the exclusion of his ideas or their challenge to society" ("Darwin without his theory?")

As an alternative, SocialistWorker.org readers should check out the excellent seven-part BBC docudrama The Voyage of Charles Darwin, first broadcast in 1978. This series mainly focuses on Darwin's five-year voyage around the world aboard HMS Beagle, when he gathered much of the evidence that led him to his theory of evolution, but it also covers his later life. All seven episodes can be viewed or downloaded for free.

For those who want something shorter than the BBC's seven-hour epic, the first episode of the 2001 PBS documentary Evolution, titled "Darwin's Dangerous Idea," is also well worth watching and is a mere two hours long. It can be seen online and is also available on DVD.

Both of these movies combine biography with clear explanations of Darwin's ideas.
Phil Gasper, Madison, Wis.