The Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill is the best DVD I have purchased so far! A generous bohemian named Mark Bittner befriends and offers sunflower seeds to a flock of Wild Parrots. Many of the parrots become tamer and respond to his generosity and to the care he provides when they become ill. At those times he nurses them back to health in his small home in San Francisco.The DVD docudrama has moments of joy, comedy and wonder. There are also times of sadness. In general it embraces the lives of a flock of wild cherry-headed conures where the stars are the flock of parrots and those who care about them.

It's nice to find a film the whole family can enjoy (G-rated)! It's hard to say what this movie is more about - the wild parrot flock or the gentle man who loves them. Yet, it's easy to see, without Mark, the movie would be nothing. He is the window into their world, showing us their unique personalities, and their value to the world. After the movie ends, be sure to watch the flock update and extras on the DVD. My 9-year old daughter emailed Mark that night...we hope to hear from him sometime. I hope the film does not turn him into a celebrity...we have enough of those already! And many kudos to Judy Irving for creating such a sensitive film and the way she handled the ending. Just perfect!

Before writing this, I took a quick skim over the other comments on this film. I had to smile when I saw there were no comments degrading the movie as much as I might have expected.'Parrots' opens with a skeptic inquiring about Bittner's relationship with the birds. If he feeds them, takes care of them when they're sick, and plays with them, what makes them wild, and not simply his pet flock? This opening scene aptly demonstrates most the preconceived notions one might have coming into the movie.However, Bittner proves to be an articulate, intelligent man, who can quietly laugh and compare himself to 'the crazy pigeon lady'. He cares deeply about these parrots, and we do too. As we meet them, Bittner sheds a bit of his own personal thoughts about the birds. He explores the human characteristics of these parrots, their cliques and love triangles, and even if we might not be enough of a bird expert to tell one red headed bird from the other, we love them all anyways.Judy Irving proves to be incredibly skilled as director, bringing us not just the quirkiness of the parrots and their pet human, but also shows the realities of the birds as wild animals. They are in danger of hawks, even are threatened by activist intervention.As far as documentaries go, 'Wild Parrots' should be remembered. No matter how skeptical or weird you think a person has to be in order to grow so attached to wild birds, this film does what all great films do; it gives you the will and the desire to care.

There was, and still is, considerable controversy about these flocks of escaped and feral tropical birds. In rural areas they threaten fruit crops, or so I'm told. And how they survive Chicago and New York winters is hard to fathom. When they are referred to as "non-native species" there is some irony; most of us, including Mark, are "non-native". And the damage we do... However, it's not about that. It is about living in the city, getting on, managing with the clear understanding that there are dangers, and how critical it is to show some care and concern. This is a very clever film, and very well done. The message seems simple and straightforward, but it turns out there are several, less obvious messages. See for yourself, and do not miss it.