The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
More cold, hard (and hot) ‘Truth’
‘An Inconvenient Sequel’ updates Gore’s battle against climate change in mostly compelling fashion
It begins with images of melting, dripping ice, which are then overlaid with audio clips of climate-change detractors. ¶ The distinct voice of Fox News fixture Sean Hannity can be heard asking how, in the midst of a severe winter-weather event, can the earth be getting warmer? ¶ We see footage of Sen. James Inhofe, a Republican representing Oklahoma, ask during a Congressional hearing on global warming in March, “How come you guys never seem to notice it when it gets cold?” ¶ He is asking Al Gore, the former U.S. vice president who, after losing a highly contested presidential election in 2000, has spent years dedicating energy to fighting global climate change. ¶ Gore, of course, is the subject of the new documentary “An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power,” the follow-up to 2006’s divisive “An Inconvenient Truth,” which also championed the Tennessean’s efforts to combat the potentially devastating man-caused heating of our planet.
Oh, how to review “An Inconvenient Sequel” in a time where a big chunk of the country seems willing to believe the mainstream media concentrates on delivering #FAKENEWS and, maybe, that this whole climate-change thing is a hoax?
Well, in talking about this reasonably educational and entertaining — and at times highly depressing — movie, let’s agree that at least much of the science presented in it is sound. And let’s be honest, if you got this far into the review, you probably believe global warming is, at a minimum, an issue worth discussing.
Gore is seen discussing it with many, from the thousands of “Climate Leaders” he trains to work on the issue in their local areas, to business leaders, politicians and foreign officials.
In fact, one of the film’s most compelling scenes — not that it goes well for Gore — shows him meeting with Piyush Goyal, India’s minister of energy. That densely populated and developing country is poised to have a very negative effect on the global climate if, as planned, it relies heavily on fossil fuels, so Gore implores Goyal to make greater of use of renewable energy sources. The Indian gentleman, in turn, asks why his country shouldn’t have the right to first use fossil fuels for decades, just as Gore’s country has?
Gore continues those efforts into the crucial 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference, calling India’s plan to build 400 “dirty coal” plants “a disaster.”
He also is seen touring the city of Miami, which some believe to be highly vulnerable to a massive future flood. Gore speaks with an engineer who tells him of efforts to raise city streets several inches, but such moves — as perhaps is illustrated by some minor flooding as Gore is trying to get to one of his training seminars — may not be enough. Gore — and the film as a whole — are not kind to Florida Governor Rick Scott, who many say does not take the issue of climate change seriously enough and who the former VP wonders how he can ignore it as he “sloshes around” a city such as Miami.
We learn about weather phenomena such as “rain bombs” leading to “Noahlike” flooding and see the devastating effect of Typhoon Haiyan, which struck the Philippines in November 2013.
Helmed by “Audrie & Daisy” co-directors Bonni Cohen and Jon Shenk, “An Inconvenient Sequel” is highly effective in illustrating just how interconnected and delicate our world is in terms of climate, how a drought in one region will lead to problems in another. It is equally fascinating and horrifying.
Of course, “An Inconvenient Sequel” is a documentary with a decided agenda, so anyone looking for any evidence to counter Gore’s certainly should search elsewhere.
In one scene, Gore is shown taking great pride discussing a controversial sequence from “An Inconvenient Truth” predicting the World Trade Center may one day find itself under water. One could argue he comes close to being pleased to show footage of flooding of that site from November 2012.
Still, “An Inconvenient Sequel” is most interested in scaring folks and encouraging action. And, as hard as it may be to believe, it ultimately feels a bit more optimistic than pessimistic.
That optimism is reflected greatly in a visit Gore takes to a small town in Texas, where the Republican mayor has led the charge toward total reliance on renewable energy, such as wind and solar. It’s a charming sequence.
Pessimism reigns in the end, however, when — and this shouldn’t require a “spoiler alert” warning — Republican Donald J. Trump is elected president of the United States in 2016 and, months later, pulls the country out of the Paris climate accord.
Gore sees it as a setback — a big one — but not his first and probably not his last.
“An Inconvenient Sequel” should be the opposite, something that continues to get out his message along with important — possibly even crucial — information.
Of course, “An Inconvenient Sequel” is a documentary with a decided agenda, so anyone looking for any evidence to counter Gore’s certainly should search elsewhere.