GORE'S TRUTH IS INCONVENIENT

Paramount Classics and Participant Productions present AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH, directed by Davis Guggenheim, featuring former Vice President Al Gore. The documentary was released 24 May and is distributed by Paramount Classics. The running time is one hour, 40 min. The widest release since opening has been only 122 theaters.

Yet, in limited release as of Thursday, 8 June, the film is taking in about $134,000 a day. The total gross is $2,478,370, according to Box Office Mojo. The opening weekend gross was only $281,000, a pittance by feature film standards, but not bad for a documentary.

AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH is not a story of despair but a rallying cry to protect the one planet we all share, a message Gore has been expounding for decades. Critics generally agree that Gore's persuasive argument is one whereby we can no longer afford to view global warming as a political issue - rather, it is the biggest moral challenge facing our global civilization. The Earth is, after all, the only home we have.

The majority of critics have given it high marks, and it was a hit at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year. Read full reviews at ROTTEN TOMATOES.

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times, gave TRUTH two thumbs up when he wrote:

"When I said I was going to a press screening of 'An Inconvenient Truth,' a friend said, 'Al Gore talking about the environment! Bor...ing!' This is not a boring film. The director, Davis Guggenheim, uses words, images and Gore's concise litany of facts to build a film that is fascinating and relentless. 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."

Kevin Crust, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer wrote:

"Gore might not be anybody's idea of a pitchman, but here he's matched with the right topic, one for which he demonstrates real passion. He's charming, intelligent, professorial and one might even say … presidential. In fact, more than one observer has commented that if this Al Gore had been more visible during the 2000 election there may have been a different outcome."

Words and phrases that keep repeating in the reviews I read? "Intelligently presented, warm, insightful, informative, enlightening, surprisingly entertaining, well-reasoned, highly polished, mandatory viewing, frightening, and well-rehearsed."

According to director Davis Guggenheim, "Al Gore strips his presentations of politics, laying out the facts for the audience to draw their own conclusions in a charming, funny and engaging style, and by the end has everyone on the edge of their seats, gripped by his haunting message."

The promo for Gore's book of the same title, which was released to co-inside with the movie, states in part, "Destined to become a classic, this accessible, entertaining, and thorough book is a unique reference for anyone who wants more information about global warming as well a guidebook for those who want to join the fight."

Mimi's comment: Global warming is real! It is caused by humans simply going about everyday activities, even the simple act of a mammal exhaling, and we are mammals, emits carbon dioxide (CO2), the most detrimental of the greenhouse gases (GHG). See GHG Chart on Wikipedia. The warming is escalating as the population escalates, and as humans burn more and more fossil fuels, i.e., coal and oil, causing more build up of CO2 and other GHG.

Bottom line about this film? As Owen Gleiberman asks in Entertainment Weekly, "AN INCONVENIENT TRUTH can't, of course, reveal a future that is still up to us, but by the time you're done watching, the real question is, Which way on God's green earth would you want to err?"

Comments anyone? Have you seen this documentary?