The 11th Hour
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Movie Reviews of The 11th Hour
Movie Review: We have to manage our minds ecologically
Summary: 5 Stars
The film is not so much about climate change. It is not so much about CO2. It is not so much about any ecological theme in particular, polluting the atmosphere, poisoning the oceans and waterways, exhausting the soil. It is about the inner truth that is ours, what has been our truth from the very start and what it is supposed to become if we are to survive as a species on this planet. Our inner truth is that we have a brain in connection with a body and its senses capturing the surrounding environment, which provides us with the possibility to think, to analyze, understand, synthesize and modelize what we can capture with and via our senses, the possibility to create tools and procedures that enable us to multiply our resources, and the possibility to communicate to other members of our species, present or future, through oral and written communication, live or recorded on various media, memory having been and still being on particularly efficient and economical medium. And I must admit I was nicely surprised by the maturity of the discourse. Instead of only culpabilizing us and making us feel guilty about what we do to the earth, it takes a different stand that insist on the absurdity of our present attitude that has developed to an extreme point over the last two centuries after the first industrial revolution. It does not preach going back to a pre-electricity age or to a pre-mechanical transportation age. It defends the fundamental principle of the human species in its long fight for survival and development: frugality, economy, saving, using resources with the principle that says as much as necessary but no more than needed. No waste at all, then no want eventually. And the best way not to waste is to use things and resources that are renewable, hence sustainable. Sustainability comes from the fact that we aim at economizing and never exhausting any source of whatever it is we want or need. At this level of reason and responsibility, the film turns marvelously poetic. The images, be they of catastrophes or of vital miracles, everyday natural life, are extremely beautiful and dealt without any fake editing, or so little. The beauty of the penguins walking to the ocean after their release on some beach is a moment of grace, and that shows what nature is all about: life and saving the natural resources we need to remain alive. The penguins go to the ocean the way we go to energy but they would never try to pollute or exhaust it. They will naturally live in equilibrium with their environment. And this we do not do right now. We have to change our way of thinking more than anything else. And that has to be done immediately, drastically and fast. That is only a question of political leadership, and not any maverick-ness or maverick-ity. We need calm, pondered upon and collective leadership that will give us the right, the duty, the responsibility to make the main choices and to manage and command the various procedures that will come out of these decisions. And once again the film turns poetic speaking of the mind, of the beauty of our spiritual capabilities. It valorizes in us our unique human creativity in order to make us reject our ubiquitous greed and desire to exploit to exhaustion if profit there is in it. We have to go back to the ecology of the mind our distant homo sapiens ancestors demonstrated when they started inventing tools to make hunting and fishing more efficient, and the domestication of animals and the cultivation of the earth to increase their collective resources in order to sustain the survival and development of the community with only one rule in their minds: economy, i.e. no more effort or work than necessary and no waste of what was gathered, hunted, fished or cultivated. The economy is part of the biosphere of this planet but the biosphere is not at the service of the economy. The economy must develop and can only do that by using the biosphere and its resources but in such a way that the biosphere is not exhausted, hence in a sustainable way. And that's the poetry of the message. You are not guilty of anything but humanity in general has grown irresponsible, hence wasteful and un-sustainable. Like a poem never uses one word or even syllable too many, we have to learn how to use what we need, not more, and make sure what we have used has been renewed or is being renewed for the future generations.
Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, University Paris Dauphine, University Paris 1 Pantheon Sorbonne & University Versailles Saint Quentin en Yvelines
Movie Review: Powerful mix of bad news & solutions.
Summary: 5 Stars
Many thanks to Leonardo for his contribution to this important film.
Predictably, some commentators are always denigrating celebrities for sharing political views; but I'm glad he ignored the cynics. I'm also glad this DVD has been selling so well.
Among the helpful moments of publicity "The 11th Hour" received was an appearance by Leonardo and the directors on the Thom Hartmann Radio Show (which streams). Hartmann is featured in the film, and has written many important books, including The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight: Revised and Updated: The Fate of the World and What We Can Do Before It's Too Late. DiCaprio thanked Thom for his inspriation, and he also mentioned the role that the [...] played in the development of this film. The Bioneers: Declarations of Interdependence The founder of the Bioneers, Kenny Ausubel, shares a lot of his insight in the film. And if people want to explore the solutions they are creating, I would highly recommend the DVDs of the Bioneers conference (not yet on Amazon, but available on the Bioneers website).
A few other items to learn from and share:
Everything's Cool - which goes into the ways in which the fossil fuel industry's PR agents have been misleading people.
e2: Design Season 2 - part of an excellent PBS series on the sorts of solutions that are being employed.
The Corporation - which features the CEO of Interface, Ray Anderson, who is a leader in "Natural Capitalism."
The SRI Advantage: Why Socially Responsible Investing Has Outperformed Financially - people with investment dollars can help the green revolution along, while experiencing returns that usually beat the rest of the market.
Sustainable Industries - packed with articles on solar, wind and green building developments.
Building the Green Economy: Success Stories from the Grassroots - written by one of the founders of "Global Exchange" which is a sponsor of the "Green Festivals" that attract tens of thousands of people each year (along with many other smaller green gatherings taking place across the country).
Plenty Magazine - a fantastic environmental journal with around 200,000 subscribers.
Big Ideas for a Small Planet: Season 1 (2pc) - an award-winning weekly series aired on the Sundance Channel.
Movie Review: Excellent viewpoint on conservation and ecology.
Summary: 5 Stars
There are so many nasty comments about this before it even comes out, what kind of people want to attack ideas before they even know what they are?
I wanted to see this movie ever since I have seen the previews of it almost a year ago.
This movie follows in the format of the documentary "The Corporation" in that is has brief interview excerpts from lots of very bright people all talking about what humanity is doing to the Earth.
One focus in on temperature. Global Warming, Climate Change call it what you will, the concensus is explained to people in a way non-scientists can understand by scientists. One example is how the polar ice caps function to reflect some of the heat radiation from the Sun away from Earth out into space. As we warm the planet the polar ice caps melt and we lose this balance so that not only do we not reflect heat to space, we actually absorb more heat causing a positive feedback look. This system can push us past a tipping point from our nice comfortable zone of termperate stability into an unknown weather system that could conceivably take up to the extreme of our other to solar neighbors, Mars or Venus.
Another focus of this movie is human population which we all know is a problem. The problem is explored in terms of the net energy use by our species and the need to "mine" stored solar energy in the form of oil/coal since we surpassed the number of humans the Earth can comfortably support living on current solar energy the way we used to live in non-technological times.
Then some solutions are explored, and new terminology is explained. I have been familiar with these ideas and terms for a long time, but I was glad to see a well done popular explanation of them in documentary form that was not a political diatribe and in fact almost had a spiritual twist to it. Because that is what is going to be needed because as most scientists agree not only are we in the 11th hour, we are at the 59th minute of that hour and counting.
Humanity has to move fast, and it has to do something it has never done before and may not be capable of doing, and that is to change our nature and act like the intelligent creatures we purport to be rather than the unthining animals who foul their nests and destroy their habitat.
Movie Review: The Next Lesson After "An Inconvenient Truth."
Summary: 5 Stars
At first, the idea of Leonardo DiCaprio producing a documentary on global warming made me wonder. Yet Leo certainly did a great job, both with the production and with his narration. It took the concept a step beyond AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH, which concentrated mainly on the facts. Leo brought in accomplished scientists and engineers to outline solutions - which most people, I'm sure, don't even know exist. These experts emphasized something that I don't think many people are aware of: We have the solutions. We have the technology to get back on track and begin to restore the Earth. There are methods that have already been tested and perfected, and if the Powers That Be were willing, we could get the ball rolling NOW. Yet it is that very power structure that is holding us back for the sake of lining its own pockets. In one sense, DiCaprio might be preaching to the choir - but on the other, his film is shouting loud enough to reach beyond the church walls. The film has all the impact of Michael Moore's SICKO. Congratulations, Leo. You've done your part.
Now: Who is going to take the next step? Who is going to stick his or her neck out and emphasize that if we don't start to heal the planet NOW, the rich and powerful won't have much time to enjoy their wealth and power. What good is having control over thousands of people when those thousands are too weak and sick to work? What good are fancy cars when there's no place to go anymore? Contrary to what some people think, we can't wait for that generation to retire or die off. Now that we know what the problem is and how to correct it, what next? Al, Michael, Leo - which of you (or perhaps all of you working together?) can convince those who hold us back that it's in their best interests to heal the planet as well?
Movie Review: Where AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH leaves off
Summary: 5 Stars
THIS IS NOT JUST ANOTHER GLOBAL WARMING FILM...so let's start there!
THIS IS NOT AL GORE,DEMOCRAT or REPUBLICAN...so let's say that!
THIS IS NOT A BASHING FILM...so there is no excuse for anyone to not see it!
Anyone who follows the current trends in weather patterns,global warming,greenhouse gases and has seen 2006's Oscar winning AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH will not be a stranger to a lot of the material presented in this expertly crafted semi-doc narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio.What sets this film apart from it's predecessor is that real concrete solutions are brought to us and a great deal of the film concerns itself with renewable energy possibilities that are quite encouraging and challenging.If you want to do something more than what you have already done, then this film is for you.If you are a skeptic,go see it anyway and maybe this time you might be convinced that something IS terribly array with The Earth.
Yes, I am as "green" as I have been able to be in the last year (which has done wonders for pocketbook and self esteem!). This film takes you even further. If the future life of this planet is of any concern to you, THE 11TH HOUR will give you hope and determination to do all that you can reasonably do in order to hold back the hands of time from striking 12!We are the generation that can do something great instead of the generation that sees our planet extinguish itself.
EXTREMELY IMPORTANT FILM.DO NOT MISS IT!5 STARS because it is a solid and excellently crafted film.(Forget it's DiCaprio if you don't care for him.This is not TITANIC...or is it?)