GrimPrecise I'll tell you why so serious

Brainsbell The story-telling is good with flashbacks.The film is both funny and heartbreaking. You smile in a scene and get a soulcrushing revelation in the next.

Allison Davies The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Gary The movie's not perfect, but it sticks the landing of its message. It was engaging - thrilling at times - and I personally thought it was a great time.

moonray-63233 An absolutely wonderful documentary which explores the creative process of Scottish artist Andy Goldsworthy, whose specialty is making art in the natural environment using natures materials: leaves, rock, twigs etc. By there very nature these works of art he so painstakingly creates are temporary, lasting, in some cases, just a matter of hours. This wonderful film provides us with many memorable images: a delicate ice structure melting in the early morning sun; a beehive hut constructed on a river bank with the branches of trees, being gently and carefully carried away by the tide. Goldsworthy says he does not see nature as destroying his structures but,rather, extending the process of creation, bringing his work onto another plane.The only voice we hear is Galsworthy's as he explains his work and his view of the world. It's not all plain sailing; we see his frustration as something he's worked on for hours collapses or is blown away by a gust of wind. On an aesthetic level, the movie is faultless as it gently reveals the artists wondrous view of nature and its beauty. A movie that draws you in as it explores the mysteries of the creative process. A joy to watch. Highly recommended.

Andres Salama A very engaging documentary about Scottish artist Andy Goldsworthy, whose work consists mostly of ephemeral sculptures made from elements from nature. His work is made of rocks, leaves, grass, ice, etc., that gets blown away when the tide arrives at the beach or the wind blows at the field. Thus, most of Goldsworthy's works don't really last, except as photos or films of what they were. Now, one can argue that Goldsworthy's works are a reflection of mortality, or words to that effect, but isn't it easier to say that what he does is just beautiful art. And at a time when the stereotype about artists is that they are mostly bitter, pretentious, often mentally unstable people who live in decrepit urban settings, Goldsworthy seems to be the opposite: a stable, unpretentious, family oriented person who loves nature and lives in a small village in Scotland (of course, I'm sure those are the same reasons why he's shunned by some people on the art world who found his works fluffy or superficial).

Dennis Littrell As the jacket proclaims, this film is "Gorgeously shot and masterfully edited," and, yes, it is mesmerizingly beautiful. The timelessness that we perceive in stoic rock and in the unceasing ebb and flow of water frames the ephemeral works from Goldsworthy's hands so that in their very ephemeralness they point to eternity.And so the beauty of his compositions haunt us with just a touch of melancholy woven in--or in the words of Matthew Arnold from "Dover Beach":Listen! you hear the grating roar Of pebbles which the waves draw back, and fling, At their return, up the high strand, Begin, and cease, and then again begin, With tremulous cadence slow, and bring The eternal note of sadness in.At one point near the end of the film Goldsworthy says that "Words do their job, but what I'm doing here says a lot more." As a wordsmith myself I take no offense and not for a moment do I think him immodest because the combination of form and time and change and texture and color and composition that Goldsworthy painstakingly and intuitively creates, is indeed something more than mere words can say.At another point he remarks on "What is here to stay...and what isn't." That is his theme.I think that artists sometime in the twentieth century became acutely aware of how ephemeral even the greatest works of art are compared to the vast expanse of cosmic time; and so they began to reflect this understanding by composing works that were deliberately ephemeral. The idea was, that by emphasizing how short-lived are even the mightiest works of humans, a sense of the timelessness of art would be expressed.Perhaps part of the effectiveness of Goldsworthy's work is in this sort of expression. He painstakingly composes some form of straw or leaves where the tide will reach it, or places it in the river where it will be swept away; and in this process is merged both the composition and its ephemerality.Both the transitory and the timeless are necessary for us to understand our world and our place within it. And it is important that these works be done within the context of nature so that what is composed is set within what is natural. Thus the walls of stone and the eggs of stone that Goldsworthy constructs are silent and solid yet we know that they are not monuments to eternity, but instead will stay for some undefined length of time and then dissipate and return to a state much like that which existed before we came along.This is art as art should be, akin to the spiritual.In a sense Goldsworthy's work is an inarticulated understanding. It is an experience purely of time and form. In a sense his work "answers" Shelley's famous poem "Ozymandias" by saying, even as the tide washes the work away, and even as the river dissipates the expression, even so the art lives on because of our experience of it. Similarly one thinks of Tibetan sand paintings so carefully composed and measured out, and then just as they are so beautifully and preciously finished, they are given to the wind, so that we might know that all is flux.Yet, in the modern world these works of art endure in photos and videos. Goldsworthy is an accomplished photographer (of necessity I would say) and all his works, even the unsuccessful ones, he tells us, are photographed so that he can look back at them in a more reflective mood and see what he has accomplished and what he has not.This cinematic production directed by Thomas Riedelsheimer with the beautiful and appropriately haunting music by Fred Frith is not to be missed. It is one of the most beautiful documentaries that I have ever seen and one of the most spiritual.(Note: Over 500 of my movie reviews are now available in my book "Cut to the Chaise Lounge or I Can't Believe I Swallowed the Remote!" Get it at Amazon!)

webdesignprof I found this film inspirational! I think most of us could afford to be more in touch with the natural world, its beauties and its fragility. Goldsworthy understands and works with, and in, nature. In the truest and purest sense, he is an artist, an artist with a profound respect for the natural world.I did not find the film to be boring or repetitive at all as some have said they did. I never, for a moment, lost interest in its images, words or message, ...and the composer created a soundtrack that beautifully blended with, and enhanced the film. My feeling is that those who think the film is boring, who think Goldsworthy is echoing some of the "earthworks and environmental art of the Sixties and Seventies," are missing its point. If Goldsworthy draws at all from what went before, I think his message... his art... is far more moving and worthy in its truth and relevence in the frightening world in which we now live! As I write this, images of war dominate the media... If there were more human beings like Goldsworthy, we might not find ourselves in this situation now. This artist understands not only nature's beauties, but also it's fleeting qualities and fragilities. This movie is as much about "time" as it is about nature... but nature, after all, IS about time - about birth, growth, maturity, death... How very sad it is that some human beings seem to need to hurt and kill others, to destroy, to dominate, to own, to take over. Goldsworthy realizes that we can't really do these things. He realizes that no matter what he creates with and in the natural world, these things will change, evolve, decompose, die, perhaps even be reborn... and what he does create is made with sensitivity, and an utter respect for all of the plants, animals, and humans around him... with a gentleness that we all could learn from...Yes, it is true that we see very little of Goldsworthy's family, and we don't get a real sense of who they are. I find myself wondering what his marriage is really like. He seems to need a lot of time alone, out in nature... time away from other people... and maybe his wife's OK with that, but are his children? Having said this, my feeling about Rivers and Tides is that Goldworthy is a remarkable artist and man. I hope that many more people see this film! Word seems to be getting out about him, and more and more of the general public - not just the artistic community and independent film buffs - are seeing, and loving, this movie!