Fireball: Visitors from Darker Worlds Parent Guide

From veteran filmmaker Werner Herzog and volcanologist Clive Oppenheimer comes this documentary about meteorites. Starting with the Kabah, the black rock at the heart of the Muslim city of Mecca and travelling the globe to explore what these lights in the sky have meant to us, Herzog and Oppenheimer meet experts, scientists, cultural historians, and locals, all of whom bring something new to the discussion. Are these merely flying stones, or portents of heavenly wisdom? What have they meant for human history, and how could they affect our future on this planet?

Documentaries have a tendency to feel a touch impersonal, but Werner Herzog has always made surprisingly human pictures. This is certainly no exception. Although Fireball could easily have been a simply hour and a half long lecture about space rocks, Herzog turns it into an exploration and celebration of human curiosity and culture, with the ejecta of the meteorites having as much impact on the geology as the people who live nearby.

Parents and teachers should be relieved to hear that there is absolutely nothing to be concerned with in this documentary. Not only is there an absence of problematic content, there is a surplus of thought-provoking, educational, and fascinating information for viewers to sift through – all of which is presented in a clear and interesting manner. Although very young children might lose interest, the documentary is completely suitable for older kids and teens.

From the bustle of Mecca to the cold desolation of Antarctica, and even to “a beach resort so godforsaken you want to cry” in Mexico, Herzog and Oppenheimer do a wonderful job explaining not just what a meteor is and what it says about space, but what it means to human beings. Add to that the breathtaking cinematography, and you have a recipe for one of the best documentaries I’ve seen this year, one about the things that bring us all together – and that’s something we all need right now. And hey, who knows, you might even learn something new.