Greetings again from the darkness. For the first few minutes, we aren't sure what we are watching. Maxim is huddled in a rustic cabin on the shore of the Russian Arctic. He eats canned good (from the can), boils his water, and recycles his cigarettes. One morning he awakens to the grunting and groaning noises occurring outside. What follows is a stunning and spectacular shot of tens of thousands of walruses huddled on the beach by his hut.

It turns out Maxim is a Marine Biologist, and he spends 43 days observing this annual ritual of walruses as part of a 10 year study. Although the walruses show up every year, the effects of climate change are obvious. There is no longer ice for them to rest on during the trek. This exhausts the creatures, causing the death toll to increase each year. Co-directors (and brother and sister) Maxim Arbugaev and Evgenia Arbugaeva deliver a beautiful (considering the harsh conditions) 25-minute film, and a stark reminder of how animals are being forced to adapt to the changes.

Beautifully, quietly shot with a fully immersive soundscape that draws you in from frame one. From there, the film slowly unveils sights and sounds that will haunt your memory - and your conscious - long after its 25 minutes are over, demanding what we as a species are going to do about the mess we've made of the planet.

Even without a note of music, the film achieves a dream-like quality and there are scenes that sear themselves into your retinas and shake you to your core. No spoilers but I am holding fast to "dream-like" over "nightmare-inducing," as the film is not just an indictment of our inaction addressing the man-made climate crisis but a rallying cry to do so before it is too late.

I watched this movie courtesy of The New Yorker's website as I began my prepping for Oscars 2023 telecast. The basic description alluded to the topic I was to watch, but the overall film is very impactful. Having seen the movie "Arctic Tale" many times, narrated by Queen Latifah, I was aware of walrus migration and their need for sea ice. This documentary, which is almost in a movie format, shows the impact of less/no sea ice for the walrus' to rest on as they approach land where they may feed, mate, and rest. The sheer enormity of the walrus gathering is something I've never seen even in a National Geographic film. I applaud the filmmakers for documenting this phenomena and the impact climate change is effecting. Also, side note, for a documentary short subject feature, I found that the sound/audio quality was very well done by the sound engineers.