"The 11th Hour"

"The 11th Hour" is a documentary that expands on the themes of "An Inconvenient Truth," warning that not only is global warming bringing us to the brink of disaster but that the notion that the human race no longer chooses to live in harmony with nature will all too soon spell the end of life on this planet as we know it. It gathers an expert array of talking heads to spell out these dire consequences and there’s some impressive photographic montages to accompany the lecture. The movie’s title comes from the notion that in a 12-hour cycle of human existence, we still have an hour left to correct all our past mistakes. The problem I found in this argument is that the movie argues that a lot of what has led us to the brink is human greed. I will agree that humanity can change its actions, but I find it a lot more difficult to believe that we can alter the basic human nature that lies at the root of those actions. Therefore, the movie left me feeling hopelessly pessimistic about our future even if I wasn’t already pessimistic about the ability of our leaders to reshape this future. Grade: C