I voted for Al Gore, though not very enthusiastically. So it was with some apprehension that I attended a preview of the new movie, An Inconvenient Truth, which opened in LA and NY on May 24 and elsewhere in the coming weeks. The film can be described as a long lecture by the Ozone Man on one of his favorite topics - global warming. I was ready for disappointment but something remarkable happened.
The movie looks at the life of Mr. Gore and his passion since he lost his job as a politician. He has been touring the world giving high-tech lectures on the problem of global warming. So there are really two stories here, one of Mr. Gore and one of global warming. But unlike many such efforts (including the slightly more exciting Day After Tomorrow in which the Capitol Records Building is hit by a tornado), the movie is not preachy and not obviously distorted.
Much of the global warming debate in the US seems to have taken a cue from the TV law programs. Everyone has to be on one side of the issue or the other, as if in a courtroom, somewhat exaggerating their position so that in the end, truth will be found in the middle ground. Expecting Mr. Gore to be a bit like Chicken Little, I tried hard to find exaggerations or even misleading information, but there weren't many. He argues passionately and convincingly but also objectively.
Perhaps the more interesting part of the movie is the human one. Al Gore always seemed to resist saying what he really believed in for fear of falling from his precarious position as the next president of the United States. Well, he fell. And it seems to have done him a world of good. He comes across in the movie as a genuine person and an interesting one at that. One can be cynical about such a portrait for someone who is being discussed to run in 2008 but it is a believable and human story.
One surprising message of the movie is not that we should go out and picket the White House (though that helps) but that each of us as individuals can and should reduce our global warming footprint. Why wait for the government to tell each of us to reduce our emissions- just do it! That struck a chord. When you buy a car, think about it's fuel use. At home, think about using higher efficiency light bulbs. When I spend $100 at Target, I assume responsibility for the emissions to produce my purchase. As I make wise choices, emissions associated with my life are reduced. When its hard to reduce emissions any more, I can pay someone else to reduce their emissions - web sites like www.climatecare.org or www.terrapass.org make this possible. The net effect is a carbon-free lifestyle.
What was remarkable in watching the movie was that the entire audience was engaged and even riveted through the 100 minute film. That is quite an accomplishment. I have sat through dozens of climate change talks and riveted is not usually an adjective I use. I think the audience came away from the movie inspired and motivated - quite an accomplishment. Its an excellent film that I recommend everyone see - Democrats and Republicans.
Thanks Al.
