Journal & Topics Media Group

Getting To The Root Of Crop Circles


Scene from “Crop Circle Realities.”

“Crop Circle Realities” (66 min, Unrated by the MPAA: Documentary). 7 out of 10

The phenomena of crop circles have been well publicized in books, TV specials and documentaries for decades. Not to be confused with ancient ground carvings discovered in South America and other locations around the world, crop circles began popping up in earnest in the late 1970s, most prominently in England. Though the oldest known crop circles go back to 1678, blamed to be the work of the devil, the sudden outburst of sightings point to what could best be termed practical jokes or pranks. As much as 80% of crop circles are known to be manmade. It’s the other unaccounted 20% that’s been befuddling us with belief that something not of this Earth is been behind it.

Along with so many unsolved mysteries that have boggled our imagination for centuries — those enormous ground etchings in South America, the Easter Island statues, the Great Pyramids of Egypt and Central America, Stonehenge, to name a few — we can now add crop circles to the “unsolved” list. Like UFO sightings, most of them can be explained as hoaxes or the result of manmade trickery. Rarely is there physical proof — that is, encounters of the Second Kind. But when it comes to crop circles, so many of them pop up in the middle of the night and stretch for hundreds of meters — how can you discount that? Only from an aerial point-of-view could they be made so geometrically perfect…and there’s been scant evidence the crops are singed or burnt. These beautiful and meaningful cuttings have been studied by learned professionals — and there’s enough photographic proof — and the finished product — to lay claim that some of these amazingly sculpted geometric designs are beyond human ingenuity.

Documentary filmmaker Darcy Weir and co-writer Geoffrey Calhoun have pieced together a thoughtful thinkpiece covering the phenomena of crop circles — focusing on England, but in other regions of the world for some fascinating and imaginative theories as to how they got there. Featuring a number of testimonials from scholars and professionals in the business, such as Gary King, Jaime Maussan and Stephen Bassett, who help boost the relevancy of scientifically proven evidence that in some cases, these crop circles are too technologically advanced to be the work of humans. Adding to the mystery is that many of the designs contain within them embedded arithmetic equations with sophisticated binary codes with celestial implications. These are no fools studying these complex designs, but respected, published authors and scientists.

From all of this documented photographic coverage and the fact many of these crop carvings exhibit elaborate spiral patterns, it’s hard to dismiss the possibility of some alien intellect at work. And here I’m treading on the toes of staunch UFO believers who, like the crop circle believers, cannot put reason to something that has no reason — or explain the authenticity of the evidence in offering a plausible theory as to these fantastical designs and shapes. It’s confounding and perplexing beyond rational belief. Let’s just hope that in the final analysis, crop circles don’t turn out to be another Shroud of Turin or Loch Ness Monster.

Already available for purchase or rent on any number of online streaming services, “Crop Circle Realities” is scheduled for limited theatrical release on March 25.

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3 responses to “Getting To The Root Of Crop Circles”

  1. Looking forward to watching this but in the meantime the best movie is “What On Earth?,” which astonishingly, since they never have covered any crop circle stories, got a good review in The New York Times!!!! It’s streaming on Amazon Prime!

  2. please tell me where can i find an index of documented crop circles

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