New DVD: Chimps : So Like Us

For three decades, Jane Goodall has studied the chimpanzees of Gombe National Park in Tanzania. There, living simply amid the lush greenery on the shores of Lake Tanganyika, she has become the world s foremost authority on man s closest relative. In CHIMPS: SO LIKE US, Goodall provides a glimpse into this special universe, sharing her vision and passionate concern for her simian neighbors.

The film opens gently in the quiet forest, where, with Goodall as guide and interpreter, the chimpanzees' remarkable similarity to humans is revealed before the camera. Like humans, chimps live in family units, make tools, eat meat and express complex emotions. The distinction between man and animal blurs as scenes of love, jealousy, friendship and war are played out within chimpanzee society.

Yet, chimps' genetic closeness to man is also their curse. In explosive counterpoint to the chimpanzees' balanced life in their natural habitat, the film reveals the shocking conditions under which many chimps suffer in poorly maintained research labs. With uncompromising conviction, the film argues the case for the chimpanzees' right to live in freedom in their natural habitat and for humane treatment when in captivity.