Is there anybody out there?
The Farthest is an immersing documentary, following the true story of the 1977 mission of the two voyager space crafts sent into space – these voyagers were sent with the desperation that someone, something from another planet or universe could grasp proof of our existence, while travelling through the solar system to have an in depth look at Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.
The aspect I enjoyed most was about the “Golden Record”. The Golden Record is the message holder of the voyager, like a paper message in a bottle thrown into an ocean, seeking for someone to find it.
The record they shuttled off into space contained a soundtrack of 28 songs, from Mozart to Chuck Berry, songs from all over the world, representing different cultures. It also included images and natural sounds of the earth that we hear in our everyday surroundings.
During the documentary, I couldn’t help but ask myself how I’d create such a thing. What 28 songs would you put in it to convey the world? Which photos, which sounds? It’s an insane, and beautiful thing to contemplate.
All the interviewees spoke with immense passion, humour, and intelligence. They poured their stories out onto the screen and each person was unique in telling their stories of this historic event – they knew what they were talking about!
The Farthest was slow paced at times and there could have been a bit shaved of the running time. But overall it was a wonderful documentary that made me question how big the universe really is and who may find the message of our world out there.
The Farthest screened at the Sydney Film Festival.
