An Inconvenient Truth (2006)

User Rating:

8.0/10   

Director:

Davis Guggenheim

Release Date:

31 August 2006 (Thailand)

Genre:

Documentary

Tagline:

A Global Warning

Plot:

A documentary on Al Gore's campaign to make the issue of global warming a recognized problem worldwide.

Plot Keywords:

Climate | Global Warming | Audience | Truth | Politics

Awards:

Won 2 Oscars. Another 21 wins & 5 nominations

Cast

Al Gore	...	Himself
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Billy West	...	(voice)

MPAA:

Rated PG for mild thematic elements.

Runtime:

100 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Canada:G | UK:U | Ireland:G | Singapore:PG | Finland:K-3 | Netherlands:MG6 | Norway:A | Hong Kong:I | Australia:PG | Portugal:M/6 | Sweden:Btl | Switzerland:7 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:7 (canton of Vaud) | USA:PG (certificate #42438) | Iceland:L | South Korea:All | France:U | Germany:o.Al. | Malaysia:U | Brazil:Livre

Company:

Lawrence Bender Productions

Trivia:

The cartoon clip that Al Gore shows to help explain global warming is from the "Futurama" (1999) episode "Crimes of the Hot." Al Gore (whose daughter Kristin was a writer for the series) guest starred as himself in the episode, claiming to be the inventor of the environment and the author of Balance of the Earth, and the more popular Harry Potter and the Balance of the Earth.

Goofs:

Factual errors: When Gore shows the slide of the ice core graph at the beginning of the movie (about 20 minutes in), the numbers on the y-axis are wrong -- the average is at 0.5, and the negative numbers are flipped. This graph is correct in the book; the slide is wrong and therefore misleading.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Al Gore: You look at that river gently flowing by. You notice the leaves rustling with the wind. You hear the birds; you hear the tree frogs. In the distance you hear a cow. You feel the grass. The mud gives a little bit on the river bank. It's quiet; it's peaceful. And all of a sudden, it's a gear shift inside you. And it's like taking a deep breath and going, "Oh yeah, I forgot about this."

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "Gilmore Girls: Introducing Lorelai Planetarium (#7.8)" (2006)

Soundtrack:

Blocks

"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

After the closing credits to An Inconvenient Truth rolled, I walked out to my car in the theater's parking lot. LA's infamous haze hung low, crimson in the twilight. In the foreground a solitary grasshopper pump drew up oil that had laid dormant for hundreds of millions of years. If Supersize Me made the prospect of a Big Mac and fries a little less appealing, imagine the feeling of slipping into a six cylinder car for a three mile trip home.

Just the same, An Inconvenient Truth is not about blame. It's also not only about the problems that global warming poses. Instead, it sets aside the matter of "who's fault is it" and leaves the viewer with the desire to ask and answer the question of "what can I do?" The film (and companion website) does not fail to deliver: both offer practicable steps to take regarding the literal sea change facing the planet.

The movie presents evidence that, to me, was quite compelling. Is it incontrovertible? Not being an environmental scientist, I couldn't say. But it's telling that out of almost 1000 peer reviewed scientific journals the film examines on the topic of global warming, the matter was not questioned by one (though doubted in more than half of the popular literature written during the same time). It's also worth mentioning that while Al Gore hosts the film, this movie is not about him. And while he may have showed up for some six years ago as stiff and stodgy, in this context he is masterful in blending the informative with the entertaining.

Go see the film for yourself. Bring a friend. Trust me, you'll be glad to have carpooled.