Through 6 separate stories we get an international view on the effects of Global Warming and how we humans keep tripping ourselves over whenever a little glimmer of hope was visible.

I think it’s fair to say that this film has a clear objective: create awareness and inspire action (same as many other films). For me it didn’t succeed. It’s very difficult mixing documentary and fiction – I’ve only seen it work a few times (“Touching the Void” being most successful). Starting with something which is clearly fictitious and then moving on to reality creates a certain doubt in the back of the viewer’s mind: Is this fiction? I’d never heard of Jehangir Wadia and kept getting the feeling that he wasn’t for real. One second he has the best intentions for the poor, the next he fires people left and right. The African girl talks about wanting to be a great doctor, then mentions it’s a way for her to be famous. The New Orleans resident talks about how stupid it is to burn oil, then next we see him riding his Harley. This is obviously done consciously and while it is an effective at showing the duality of man, it also left me more depressed than inspired.

On the plus side there are important things to say. The film was crowd-funded, made with passion, has great editing and soundtrack and tries to do something original. Oh, the animation is just amazing.

(view the making of the film)

IMDB: 6.8/10 (1382 votes) / Rotten Tomatoes: 79% (14 reviews) / Wikipedia page / “Official site”:http://www.spannerfilms.net/films/ageofstupid / 92 minutes
Directed by: Franny Armstrong

You may also like:
- “Food = Waste”
- “Collapse”
- “Food, Inc.”

Colin Beavan decided to live one year without having any negative impact on the environment. What does that mean? It means only buying local, not using anything disposable (including diapers, plastic containers and toilet paper!), not taking the elevator, only using public transportation, not using electricity and not producing any waste. All in a small New York apartment.

Can he do it? Yes. And it’s an incredible feat.

As a movie, film-makers Laura Gabbert and Justin Schein got two special presents: Colin’s wife and daughter. His wife is incredibly well-spoken, she manages to pin-point the situation again and again, articulate and with humor, while conversations with their daughter are used tastefully, intelligently and charmingly as a narrative vehicle. Very well done.

Even so the movie falls short. In the end Colin questions the value of the project and it becomes apparent that, like a poorly set up experiment, the “No Impact Man” project doesn’t prove anything. Well, anything except that everyone involved have their hearts in the right place and deserve much credit for completing a very ambitious project.

IMDB: 6.6/10 (352 votes) / Rotten Tomatoes: 88% (40 reviews) / Official site / 93 minutes
Directed by: Laura Gabbert and Justin Schein

You may also like:
- “Food = Waste”
- “Collapse”
- “Food, Inc.”

Just like “The End of Suburbia”, “Collapse” deals with global oil depletion. What happens when we run out of the black gold? (hint: it won’t be pretty!)

Director Chris Smith does so many things right with Collapse. It’s expertly structured and manages to swing the direction back and forth between “this guy is out of his mind!” to “my God, is he right?” (example: notice what happens when Ruppert is asked about human ingenuity). The doc is also precisely cut around the story of oil depletion, but slowly lets in glimpses of Michael Ruppert’s lonely character.

The subject matter is not easy to explain and not easy to understand, but Collapse does a fine job of presenting this complex subject. It’s hard not to think of “Fog of War” when watching “Collapse” – it has many of Errol Morris’ trademarks, even the music sounds very similar to that of Philip Glass. But upon a closer examination you discover a slew of new film techniques which will surely be copied by other documentary filmmakers further down the line. It’s not easy to capture Michael Ruppert’s intense expression – I’ve seen him looking dull in other interviews – but Chris Smith completes the task with flying colors.

“Collapse” managed to spark long and heated discussions amongst the people I viewed it with. Days later the discussion is still not over. How often does that happen?

IMDB: 8.0 (973 votes) / Rotten Tomatoes: 82% (22 reviews) / Wiki article / Official site
Directed by: Chris Smith

Watch the film here:

Youtube: 5 out of 5 stars (1030 reviews) / 13 minutes

Fantastic short doc aimed at showing the breadth and depth of Getty’s Hulton Archive. The challenge for this director has been “how can you show photographs that don’t exist?” Watch the short below and witness the amazing solution to this challenge.

Youtube: 5 stars (137 reviews) / 7 minutes
Directed by: Laurie Hill

A violently honest shortdoc featuring home video footage taken by the director’s late father, a man who had a few things to hide. Although the editing is very rough and has a distinct “home made” feel to it, the effect of the film is nonetheless haunting.

IMDB (awaiting 5 votes) / Official site
Directed by: Marina Lutz

Short doc winner of CPH:DOX 2009. “Three Pilots” is a beautiful doc about flying and the people who enjoy it. Visually the film is quite poetic, but it didn’t really get to me.

7 mins.
Directed by: Philip Leaman

Can be seen January 6th in Denmark! More info on DOX:BIO.

“Into Eternity” is like no other documentary you have ever seen. It’s a film that questions how we see the world and offers a peak into the far, far future. If “2001″ were a documentary, this would be it.

When I saw the trailer and read the description of “Into Eternity” in the CPH:DOX 2009 program it didn’t interest me at all. In fact, I only saw the film because the one I actually wanted to see got cancelled – and boy am I glad it did! I like high production value in documentaries and this one has probably the highest I have ever seen. There was a Q&A with Michael Madsen, the modest and soft-spoken director, after the first screening. He described how the team had painstakingly considered every aspect of the style they were aiming for. The result is a truly cinematic experience; sound, music, cinematography and content work together beautifully.

The film is already receiving high praise in the Danish press and I’m sure it will find a long life as a cult film.

IMDB (awaiting 5 votes) / official site / 85 minutes
Directed by: Michael Madsen

Unrated / Youtube: 4.5 stars (199 reviews) / 10 minutes
Directed by: Casimir Nozkowski

Roger Ebert has posted his list of the 10 best dox of of 2009.

• Anvil! The Story of Anvil
• Beaches of Agnes
• Collapse
• Food Inc.
• Must Read After My Death
• Of Time and the City
• The September Issue
• Tyson
• We Live in Public
• What’s the Matter with Kansas

I’m curious that Burma VJ is not on the list. Several people in the comments are complaining about the absence of “The Cove” – although it’s a good doc, I don’t personally think it’s the best candidate for the Oscar it seems to be heading for.

Otherwise a super interesting list – I’m dying to see Collapse, Must Read After My Death and Food Inc.