Traveling Bones

Exclusive new exhibit at Dallas' Perot Museum displays some very old skulls

Origins: Fossils from the Cradle of Humankind

Skulls of ancient human relatives will be on display at the Perot Museum this fall.

Photo by Brett Eloff/Wits University

A new exhibition coming to The Perot Museum of Nature and Science is about to get down with some very old skulls.

Called "Origins: Fossils from the Cradle of Humankind," it will feature fossils that are considered to be one of the greatest fossil discoveries of the past half century.

This exclusive exhibition comes from South Africa and may possibly be the only appearance in the United States. It'll be on view for five months, starting October 19, 2019 and ending on March 22, 2020.

The exhibition is done in partnership with the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits University) in South Africa and the National Geographic Society. It features two skulls — Australopithecus sediba and Homo naledi — both discovered in the last 11 years.

It marks the first time that ancient hominin fossils have traveled for public display since "Lucy" (Australopithecus afarensis), the famous fossil that toured the United States for six years, from 2007 to 2013.

Perot Museum CEO Linda Silver says in a statement that this new exhibit provides an "extraordinary and historic opportunity" to come face-to-face with these two newly discovered species of our ancient human relatives.

"The fossils featured in 'Origins' have never been displayed outside South Africa — and probably never will be again," Silver says.

The Australopithecus sediba fossils were discovered in 2008 by a nine-year-old named Matthew Berger, and were a find because of how complete their condition was.

The Homo naledi fossils were discovered in 2013 in South Africa by a Wits University team that included the Perot Museum's Becca Peixotto, director and research scientist of the Center for the Exploration of the Human Journey.

The exhibition ties in to the Perot Museum’s recently launched Center for the Exploration of the Human Journey, a global hub for education, communication and research in the study of human origins. The exhibition will also showcase the collaboration and dedication demonstrated by a diverse, multinational scientific team of women and men.

The on-sale date for tickets for the special exhibition has not yet been determined; go to perotmuseum.org for more information.

museums

Movie Review

The Magic Faraway Tree is a whimsical family lark that fails to take root

Photo courtesy of Vertical Entertainment

Andrew Garfield, Delilah Bennett-Cardy, Claire Foy, Phoenix Laroche, and Billie Gadson in The Magic Faraway Tree.

With kids and families always on the hunt for entertainment, it’s typically a safe bet for a movie studio to offer up something new, even if it is a film based on an old property. The Magic Faraway Tree, based on a series of books that started in the 1930s, is a very old property, one that its filmmakers have tried to liven up with a few stars, a lot of whimsy, and a boatload of CGI.

The Thompson family, led by stay-at-home dad Tim (Andrew Garfield) and breadwinner mom Polly (Claire Foy), are forced to move to a rundown country home when Polly gets laid off. The kids - Joe (Phoenix Laroche), Fran (Billie Gadson), and Beth (Delilah Bennett-Cardy) - are used to the perks of city life like wifi and electricity, and each of them rebels in their own way to their new lot in life.

Fran, enticed by a fairy named Silky (Nicola Coughlan), is the first to venture out of the house, making her way to a magic tree that transports her to a world full of strange characters like Moonface (Nonso Anozie), Saucepan Man (Dustin Demri-Burns), Dame Washalot (Jessica Gunning), and more. Her adventures there not only broaden the world she thought she knew, but may be the key to helping her ailing family.

Directed by Ben Gregor and written by Simon Farnaby (Paddington 2, Wonka), the film is a pleasant enough lark, but it fails to fully capture the imagination. The five-member family has a lot going on, from an initially-mute Fran to a domestic situation that raises more questions than it answers. The film tries to incorporate an anti-technology message through Tim’s hatred of a smart refrigerator (voiced by Judi Dench!) and the kids' addictions to devices, but it’s quickly shed in favor of other options.

Once Fran makes it to the Magic Faraway Tree, there’s a nice shift in the storytelling, but it’s unclear what the ultimate goal is. It’s a good idea to have Fran, the youngest of the children, convince her older, more cynical siblings about the virtues of the magic world, but the conflict in the real world doesn’t seem to rise to the level needed for the escape the tree provides.

There also seems to be a missing link in the storytelling for viewers to understand the importance of the fantastical characters. The visuals of seeing Moonface and his crescent moon-shaped hair, a man with a suit full of banging pots, and more are fun for a while, but not enough to carry the whole film. A last-minute revelation feels like it was something that should have been disclosed much earlier to help strengthen the emotions of the story.

A two-time Oscar nominee, Garfield is making his first foray into family movies (if you don’t count playing Spider-Man), and while he does a good job, he doesn’t make the best fit for the semi-goofy role. The same goes for the Emmy-winning Foy, who isn’t given much of anything to do. The movie puts the story on the shoulders of the three child actors, and while each of them acquit themselves well, none of them are so outstanding as to be noteworthy.

With nearly 90-year-old source material, The Magic Faraway Tree needed to be something truly special to stand out in the 21st century movie world. Unfortunately, it features a mostly forgettable story that features some fun visuals, a couple of cute kids, and not much else.

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The Magic Faraway Tree is now playing in theaters.

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