“In 39 years, I have never written these words in a movie review, but here they are: You owe it to yourself to see this film. If you do not, and you have grandchildren, you should explain to them why you decided not to.” Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
Yesterday I had two weather-related conversations with relatives in Oregon. “Have you heard about our record-breaking heat wave? It’s been over 100 degrees here… in June!” For you non-Oregonians who find the blistering heat to be a summertime regularity, it is shocking to those of us from the Pacific Northwest who only use the a/c in late July and August.
Afterwards, and completely by chance, I went with Pete and Amanda to see Al Gore’s global warming movie An Inconvenient Truth. Considering the little-known fact that during the 2000 election campaign I commonly referred to Al Gore as “Gorebot” (suggestive of his inability to register emotions on screen), I went into the film expecting little more than hyped-up politicized data. I mean – what could the Gorebot tell me (an intelligent, informed citizen of the world ::ahem::) about the future of our beautiful little planet?
A lot actually. Despite my pretenses, the movie moved me. For someone as stubborn as me – that speaks volumes. It helps connect the dots between humanity’s influence on the atmosphere and the recently unprecedented volume of natural disasters.
Even Fox News published an article saying that the top climate scientists are in agreement with the film’s scientific accuracy. I’m sure that was painful for Fox News, considering their hosts & political pundits are so partisan that they’re still waiting for WMDs to come out of Iraq… any day now, right?
I’m putting it on my Top Ten List of Movies that are Important To See (also included are the following films: American History X, Paradise Now, Crash, American Beauty, Hotel Rwanda, Schindler’s List, The Life of David Gale, Born Into Brothels, and What’s Eating Gilbert Grape). Trust me when I say it’s not easy for a movie to make this list.
So, look up a theatre near you and go see it. It’ll be well worth the money.
abdonlore:
I had the same feeling when I saw this movie. I remember making fun of Al Gore back during the 2000 election, but I was very impressed with this movie.
4 years ago
pb49r:
Funny thing: I was driving out in Clackamas today, and there was Mt. Hood, looking like the August 1964 picture. I have been hearing a lot of critiquing of Mr. Gore’s movie. The right keeps attacking him, and his points, pointing out normal fluctuations. The left keeps holding his book and movie up for honor, with a “we told you so.” In between has to be the truth. We are seeing some evidence of physical decline of our Earth, and warming trends that are resulting in climate change. Aren’t I glad to not have to stay here forever. It reminds me that C.S. Lewis portrays change in the tales of Narnia. The more things go on, the more they change.
4 years ago
pb49r:
Wow! “ForeverFields” makes a great point (fellow Oregonians) even for a “furiner”. I also was transplanted from elsewhere, and have live in Oregon for (drum roll, please:) 32 years! Just last week I was thinking about how I used to go swimming every year for the first time about Memorial Day weekend. Now I cannot stand the temperature until around July 4th! {poor baby :( ) } The hot temperatures we had last week, and two months ago (April) are not usual Oregon weather. Mr. Gore could have a point.
Esther, I want to thank you for tackling the issue. It gave me a laugh, and then caused me to think. This is a film we at least should see, whether we believe there is global warming, or not. There is melting of the glaciers: fact. It is flooding all around the nation more frequently: fact. Last year’s Hurricane season was the worst on record: fact. But we are not supposed to be sitting around moaning and groaning about how “man is destroying the environment”. We are to “occupy till I come”. And I do believe we do what we can to cut back on energy useage, and minimize on the extravagances. All for the sake of being Christ’s witness in this world.
I saw “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape”, about 13 years ago. It made a lot of sense to me. I really felt I could relate to him.
4 years ago
ForeverFields:
For the record, I moved out to Portland expecting it TO RAIN and be tolerable for me… a Wisconsinite that almost wishes it was winter every day of the year; not a big of the sun or HEAT… but it was almost 90 for an ENTIRE week in APRIL of 2004 when I moved out there. I saw rain a HANDFUL of times, there was a SERIOUS lack of water and it was causing all sorts of issues. So I understand the SHOCK to fellow Oregonians (though, I never did quite consider myself that in the entire 14 months I lived there).
Second, I’m interested in seeing this movie now; You gave it some serious props. Doubt I’ll have time or money to see it… but I’m officially intrigued.
Lastly, for now, I never did get to see American Beauty in its entirity :(
4 years ago
morganfreebase: Dude just because it gets hotter here doesn’t mean it’s bad. Cuz what about people in Alaska. They won’t hafta freeze their bums off anymore. Plus, in a thousand years, Antarctica will be a tropical paradise. You gotta go with the flow man.4 years ago
bullmeister: There’s no global warming, but there is more volatility in weather. In all of my environmental classes, there was speculation about rising temperatures, but the only sure prediction was that there would be more hurricanes and earthquakes and bizarre weather. As human beings, we’re still blips on a big planet that can spew out more pollution in a blast than a nation of cars.
If I hadn’t spent years of my life studying this, I would expect to learn something new from the movie. But I know from Al Gore’s history that he is more political than scientific. That he hates people that are below him and thinks they should die. i.e. Have to suffer with environmental controls that remove their ability to make a living. He says these ridiculous comments about human beings in his book, and I doubt he has changed his tune.
You’ll find nothing but agreement from me that humans are having a detrimental effect on many aspects of the world, but I can also effectively argue that natural trends in the world rule the day. They did in the Ice Age before we even knew what carbon dioxide, and they still do.4 years ago
balticblond: We’ll go see it.4 years ago
RegularGoy:
I’ve heard mixed reviews on Gore’s science, though it seems impossible that the earth’s present climate changes are not in some way related to the chemicals we’re releasing into the atmosphere.
What I will say for Gore is this: he has been consistently committed to an environmentalist agenda for over twenty years, even when it has been politically inconvenient to him. I admire that.
But God help me he always looks like he left the hanger in his suit jacket. Gorebot indeed.
4 years ago
bsirvio: Any day now. http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=50746 (the .pdf link is what matters here.)
And if you can’t trust Fox News for any of their other coverage before, why would you believe them about global warming now? It’s still junk science. I felt moved after I saw Bowling for Columbine in the theater, and then I did the research, and then I decided to not let entertainment dictate my viewpoints from that moment forward.
Does this mean we should all rev our SUV engines in joyous unison? Not at all. We still ought to take care of the environment, it is our responsibility to ourselves, each other and God, should we want to make it a theistic point. But the really inconvenient truth for Gore, those down with the socialistic Kyoto protocol and generally incompetent governments trying to meet impossible standards, is that temperature changes have not been noted since 1945. Of course it’s a political issue, it’s liars trumping up halftruths to stamp down personal responsibility for more power to go to the liars.4 years ago