(Canada/UK, 112 min.)
Dir. Jerry Rothwell
Programme: Special Presentations
(Canadian Premiere)
It takes a lot of moxie to title
a film How to Change the World. That’s a bold name, for a “how to” guide to
fix the planet is a large thing to tackle in one feature length film. The
thrilling and inspiring How to Save the
World, however, largely succeeds as director Jerry Rothwell recounts the
rise of Greenpeace with five quick tips on how to make the world a better
place.
How to Change the World puts art and activism hand in hand as Rothwell mounts some handsome archival footage of Greenpeace’s early endeavours. The film tells how a few determined individuals can inspire social change as it assembles interviews with the founding members of the eco-minded organization Greenpeace. The activists reflect upon their grassroots effort, which began with a few highly cinematic episodes of radicalism that thrust them into the spotlight.
They protest nuclear testing in
Alaska with little rewards, aside from rallying a good deal of consciousness
from the masses. This effort leads to something greater, though, as the time
spent at sea in a little boat filled with passion and forward-thinking will
power looked to the waters and saw a new worthy cause: the whales.
How to Change the World offers a
riveting adventure of the high seas as Greenpeace confronts the brutal poaching
of humpback whales en masse by the Russians. Spectacularly gut-wrenching
footage of butchered whales drifting at sea and geysers of blood erupting from
the hulls of seafaring killing floors show the unethical treatment of the
natural world that Greenpeace brought to the spotlight. The troupe’s
confrontation with the whalers’ harpoon gun is amazing, and a gripping account
that marks a turning point for what one small group can do to bring attention
to a cause.
The next episode, though, in
which Greenpeace looks to save the cute, cuddly seals of Newfoundland, brings
about a change in temperature. The group divides itself between the ideal and
the real as some members want to pursue what is right while others accept the
fact that the financial burden of taking on two causes isn’t realistic for a
non-profit collective. The film teaches audiences that tangible, large-scale
change comes not through radical maverick action, but through cooperation and,
occasionally, compromise. The rogue and, one could argue, defiant moves that
some individuals within Greenpeace make with the seal trade shows that it takes
a lot more than ideology to change the world. This rift within Greenpeace, as
well as the turns of another founding member, asks audiences how the left can
enact substantial change through efforts held together by charity and good
vibes that clash with the methods of the mainstream. Some middle ground is
needed.
Surprisingly enough, How to Change the World argues that an
organization isn't necessarily the answer for saving the world. The film shows
many of the drawbacks to Greenpeace and many of its failings, which hint at
avenues of improvement for forward-thinkers. The green movement is larger than
any one group, so Rothwell's portrait of the group extends to viewers the
hypothesis that the real solution lies in the foundation of Greenpeace itself:
a network of individuals united by passion and ideology is enough.
How to Change the World should inspire
environmentalists and filmmakers alike with its eye-opening footage of the
beginnings of one of the most significant contemporary movements. The archival
footage is a treasure trove of both activism and maverick filmmaking: the
footage itself is journalist in nature, but How
to Change the World assembles it so artfully and intelligently that it's
bound to plant seeds in a new movement. The objective portrait makes the
necessity of groups like Greenpeace all the more urgent, while the strong
endnotes on the death of Rob Hunter and the activism of his daughter Emily
ushers in a new generation of revolutionaries.
Rating: ★★★★ (out of ★★★★★)
Rating: ★★★★ (out of ★★★★★)
Please visit
www.hotdocs.ca for more information on this
year’s festival.
*Note: How to Change the World screens in Ottawa at The ONEFF at The ByTowne on Saturday, May 23 at 6:00pm and beginning Friday, August 28th.
