Protest Movies On Environmental Issues

Movies have long helped us understand what it means to live on earth and

contribute to an ecologically sustainable planet. In one vision of the distant future,

after global warming has melted the ice caps and left the planet covered in water,

Kevin Costner grows fish gills, lives on a trimaran, and battles pirates as he sails in

search of the legend of “Dryland.”

Waterworld is a constant reminder of the risks associated with making environmental

movies. In 1994, it was the most expensive film ever, and the heart of the story was a

future ravaged by global warming. It didn’t help that the film was terrible,

but Waterworld continues to color the way we think about environmental movies.

Waterworld highlights a problem for environmental cinema: Discussions tend to focus

on a fairly narrow range of films, often defined primarily by celebrity documentaries

(An Inconvenient Truth, The 11th Hour), the occasional message movie (Promised

Land), disaster/post-apocalyptic movies (The Day After Tomorrow), and Wall-E. For

most viewers, the world of environmental movies is small.

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But filmmakers have long considered the environmental consequences of human

behavior, imagined ecological changes on local and global scales, explored cata-

strophic failures of resource management, and told all kinds of other planetary and

environmental stories. Sometimes, these themes are central to a film’s story. In the

best ones, such elements underlie a well-written narrative that tells a gripping story

about personal relationships, challenges the way we think, or expands our views of

the human experience.

This list is meant to expand the way we think of movies that address our planet’s

health and the ways in which our own well-being is connected to it. Some are obvious

choices and others may be surprising, but each contributes to our understanding of

what it means to live on earth and contribute to an ecologically sustainable planet.

Fortunately, there are people out there trying to make a difference; environment
organizations get more and more involved and even the common man tries to do his
part in reducing his/hers carbon footprint. The artistic world has not remained
oblivious to this problem and has gotten involved the best it could.

Lots of feature films and documentaries address the issue on a daily basis, if not as

their main plot at least as a theme of the film. We can only hope that these films will

raise awareness and that all is not lost. Here is a selection of films (feature films and

documentaries) to keep the fight for environmental protection alive. Some of them

may inspire your inner environmentalist.

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 Bambi (1942)

It’s been 70 years since Bambi first traumatized children with the most famous hunt-

ing expedition in movie history. And yet the tale of Bambi and his friends continues to

inspire a love of wildlife in its viewers. Touching and sad and scary, the relationships

between Bambi, his protective mother, and his friends are as deep and loving as one

will find anywhere else on screen.

There is no question that Bambi has altered the landscape of wildlife protection. And

like anything that has lasting cultural impact, the results haven’t been entirely posi-

tive. The Bambi Effect—a special interest among the public in the protection of ani-

mals we find particularly adorable, like cute little deer, at the expense of those ani-

mals considered ugly or pests—has created difficulties for wildlife management ef-

forts. Just look at the complicated issues of deer in urban environments, chronic

wasting disease, and culling efforts to see the Bambi Effect in action.

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Soylent Green (Richard Fleischer, 1973)

“Soylent Green” was one of the first films to treat the environmental issue in an
alarming matter. It really captured the people’s attention and imagination with its
dystopian imagery of overpopulation and pollution, because of the heavy
industrialization of the 20th century. The movie takes place in 2022 where natural
fruits, vegetables and meats are extinct.

The Earth is overpopulated and New York City has 40 million starving, poverty
stricken people. The only way they survive is with water rations and eating a
mysterious food called Soylent. Police detective Thorn (Charlton Heston) investigates
the murder of the president of the Soylent Company.

In his investigation, he stumbles upon the world’s biggest conspiracy involving the
mysterious food that people take for granted as being the only key to survival. Don’t
let the dystopian mask of the film fool you; underneath the detective story, “Soylent
Green” is a very strong film in terms of environmental awarness.

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An Enemy of the People (George Schaefer, 1978)

Given the big names involved in the production, this film was supposed to be a
masterpiece…but it wasn’t. The film has now gained a cult status and is reviewed in
better terms but back in the day it wasn’t well received at all. The film is loosely
based on a play by famous Norwegian playwright Henrik Ibsen.

The stage play was turned into a screenplay by famous American playwright Arthur
Miller. The lead part was played by legendary Hollywood actor Steve McQueen, who
was also heavily involved in the production of the film. This was supposed to be a
vehicle film for him, in which he would show the world that he could act.

However, Warner Brothers could not figure out how to distribute the film – Steve
McQueen was widely known as an action star – and so the picture had a brief theater
release. Steve McQueen stars as Thomas Stockmann, a doctor and an amateur
scientist in a small unnamed Norwegian town. The town is trying to promote itself as
a place for tourists to come enjoy the therapeutic hot springs and the unspoiled
nature.

Dr. Stockmann, however, makes the inconvenient discovery. He finds out that the
runoff from the local tanning mill has contaminated the water to a dangerous degree.
The town’s leaders argue that cleaning up the mess would be far too expensive and
the publicity would destroy the town’s reputation, so therefore news of the pollution
should be suppressed. Dr. Stockmann decides to fight to get the word out to the
people.

The people, however, seem to be more interested in the tourist plan than the
environment plan and so only few citizens support Stockmann’s cause. “An Enemy of

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the People” is a very well-acted film whose issues are not at all dated in today’s
world.

Prophecy (1979)
Nowhere in cinema are the consequences of humanity’s manipulation of nature more
directly embraced than in horror movies. The freakish results of scientists’ meddling
into the natural order has been plaguing large cities, small towns, and rustic cabins
since the genre came to be. Manipulating the dead led to Frankenstein’s monster
continuously terrorizing locals on-screen since 1931. The fallout of our nuclear weap-
ons awakened the Tokyo-destroying Godzilla of 1954.

But it wasn’t until the creature features of the 1970s and 80s that the horror genre
began a deep dive more directly into environmental territory.

Killer monsters roaming the lands are not particularly insightful centerpieces for cin-
ematic ingenuity, and John Frankenheimer’s fairy-tale-gone-wrong about industrial
pollution, Prophecy, isn’t a great movie. But it’s a fantastic example of the B-movie
camp that made the era’s horror so memorable.

The story opens with the disappearance of two lumberjacks. An EPA employee
heads out to study the impacts of local logging efforts accompanied by rescuers
searching for the missing loggers. It’s only a matter of time before something—
possibly the vengeful spirit Katahdin of local native mythology?—appears in response
to the logging activity and brings with it carnage and death. The beast itself, a giant,
bear-like mutation created by industrial toxic pollution, terrorizes the woods and its
inhabitants with no shortage of body count and blood. In the middle of all the puppet-

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ry and outrage and gore-filled ridiculousness is an actual story about the dangers of
human carelessness and arrogance.

The China Syndrome (James Bridges, 1979)

While doing a series of reports on alternative energy sources, an opportunistic

reporter named Kimberly Wells (Jane Fonda) witnesses an accident at a nuclear
power plant. Along with her cameraman (Michael Douglas) and the plant’s supervisor
(Jack Lemmon), Wells is determined to publicize the incident but soon finds herself
entangled in a sinister conspiracy to keep the full impact of the incident a secret.

The film mixes a number of popular film genres such as suspense, thriller and
disaster movies, but never strays too far from its core environmental theme. On her
way to the truth, Kimberly is faced with a lot of obstacles that will ultimately shape her
professionally and personally. The film was released in 1979, in troubled times for the
United States. A real incident at a nuclear power plant took place just 12 days after
the release of the film, galvanizing the anti-nuclear movement in the country.

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Koyaanisqatsi (Godfrey Reggio, 1982)

“Koyaanisqatsi” is not as much a documentary as it is an . The title of the film means

“life out of balance”, in a Native American dialect from Arizona. The film consists
primarily of slow motion and time-lapse footage of cities and many natural
landscapes across the United States. This visual poem contains neither dialogue nor
a vocalized narration: its tone is set by the juxtaposition of images and music.

The film is trying to dress the environmental issue by imposing, on the viewer,
spectacular imagery of nature with the frenetic comings and goings of a modern-day
megalopolis. The film is an almost meditation on our environment, both found and
constructed. Tedious at first, but once you get into the zone the film will reveal itself
as amazing.

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Silkwood (Mike Nichols, 1983)

When listing the best environmental feature films of all time “Silkwood” is a
must…and for good reason. It is based on the real life story of Karen Silkwood. The
movie is fairly accurate and stars Meryl Streep as Karen Silkwood, a metallurgy
worker at a plutonium processing plant who was purposefully contaminated,
psychologically tortured and possibly murdered in order to be prevented from
exposing the blatant worker safety violations at the plant.

At first, Karen becomes suspicious after a couple of her colleagues are contaminated
on a daily basis because the required precautions have not been taken. Poverty
determines the workers not to speak out against the work conditions and so they
accept their fate for a little money in their pocket.

After becoming contaminated herself, Karen is determined, more than ever, to

uncover what she knows to the press and the public opinion. Sadly, she mysteriously
disappears just on the eve of her meeting with the “New York Times”. To this day,
nobody knows what has happened to her. The film made quite an echo after its
release lending a helping hand in raising awareness of the nuclear dangers of the
everyday man.

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FernGully: The Last Rainforest (1992)

Would there be an Avatar without its little animated predecessor, FernGully: The Last

Rainforest? Animation is a genre that has deep ecological roots. Animated films

from East and West have long explored the interconnectedness between humanity

and the planet. And when it comes to Western animation, FernGully: The Last Rain-

forest is among the most treasured environmental films.

Set in an animated rendition of Australia’s rainforests, the film pits loggers—again

(always any easy villain the pictures)—against a magical, unseen world that lives

deep within the woods.

What FernGully lacks in depth and inspiration—it’s a fairly straightforward kids’ pro-

duction—it makes up in dedication to its cause. Released in 1992, FernGully may

feel a little dated (1990s Robin Williams, who voices Batty, dates everything). But

kids today still respond to the magical world of Crysta and her fairy friends, and their

life-depending need to keep the rainforest intact, free from exploitation.

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On Deadly Ground (Steven Seagal, 1994)

Ok, so “On Deadly Ground” is not a great film. It is not even a good film, but it is on
this list because it came out in the early 90’s when environmental awareness was
finally taken seriously. The fight for a cleaner environment transcended into the non-
niche forms of art such as cartoons (“Captain Planet” was a very important and
popular cartoon show that made a huge impression on the children of the 90’s) and
action films.

The action genre spoke out against pollution through the Steven Seagal vehicle “On
Deadly Ground”, which also featured Michael Caine. The film might be corny or
cheesy, but it does – nonetheless- deliver a very powerful ecological message
through the efforts of Seagal’s character (Forrest Taft), to protect the locals of a small
American town from the toxic fires caused by the oil corporation.

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Waterworld (Kevin Costner, 1994)

In one vision of the distant future, after global warming has melted the ice caps and
left the planet covered in water, Kevin Costner grows fish gills, lives on a trimaran,
and battles pirates as he sails in search of the legend of “Dryland.”

Waterworld is a constant reminder of the risks associated with making environmental

movies. In 1994, it was the most expensive film ever, and the heart of the story was a
future ravaged by global warming. It didn’t help that the film was terrible,
but Waterworld continues to color the way we think about environmental movies.

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Safe (Todd Haynes, 1995)

“Safe” is not really an environmental film but then again it’s not doesn’t really belong
in any genre; it’s one of those special films that comes out once in a while. It does not
deal with the endless fight of protecting the environment but more with the effects
chemicals and pollution on the average citizen.

This is the case with Carol White (Julianne Moore) – a seemingly unremarkable
homemaker – who develops what is known as the “Twentieth-Century Disease”, a
multiple chemical sensitivity. Her body is rebelling against the overload that her
immune system has to deal with, as she is continually exposed to all of the chemicals
that we inhale, ingest, and absorb daily.

The pollution in our air, pesticides on our food and toxins in our water, are collectively
overwhelming her defense system. The ubiquitous sprays, creams and emollients
used to beautify have become deadly poisons to her.

Despite all this, the audience does not find itself rooting for Carol, because they are
never sure about each character’s hidden agenda. Seemingly, a timid, frightened
pawn, overwhelmed by her condition, Carol just might have bigger problems of the
psychological matter. Carol does not want to fight those responsible for the chemicals

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making her sick because that would mean to fight the 20th century. In truth, she
doesn’t really know what she wants other than to be safe.

A Civil Action (Steven Zaillian, 1998)

“A Class Action” is a very important film for the environmental struggle but is also
very dark and gritty when referring to the outcome of this struggle. The film is a based
on the non-fiction book of the same name and the situation presented is,
unfortunately, very much real. The story begins with a focus on cocky and tenacious
lawyer Jan Schlichtmann (John Travolta), who will use any means necessary to win a
case and put money into his pocket.

One day, he takes on a case that he thinks will be an easy stretch and will bring him
fame and fortune. The case regards the families of a couple of deceased children,
who want to sue a giant food conglomerate because they believe the company is
responsible for poisoning their children and afflicting them fatally with cancer.

However, this just might be that case that Jan cannot win. Not only that, but the case
is liable to ruin Jan in more than one way: his pride, his ambition, and ultimately, his
career. As the pressures of the case begin to take their toe on both the prosecution,
the defense, as well as the families, Jan is about to realize that he has taken on the
biggest case of his life, and there is a price to pay.

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Travolta does a very good job in portraying the cocky lawyer that slowly begins to
show his human side and Robert Duvall is outstanding as the cynical lawyer
representing the food corporations that doesn’t give a damn about what’s right and
wrong. Unlike Jan, he just wants to win the case without getting personally involved.

Erin Brockovich (Steven Soderbergh, 2000)

“Erin Brockovich” is the “Silkwood” of the 2000’s. The film – based on real events –
managed to cross-over from the niche of environmental films and become a
worldwide success thanks to a very intelligent screenplay, the documentary style look
given by director Steven Soderbergh and the amazing performance of Julia Roberts
in the lead role.

Part environmental film, part biopic, part courtroom drama, “Erin Brockovich” is the
story of a single mother of three children, working in a legal office, who encounters
the medical records of a local woman who was treated by the doctors of the “Pacific
Gas and Electric Company”. In these files, Brockovich finds many community
members with similar illnesses, all treated by the same doctors.

This determines her to begin an unwinnable fight against the corporation, in which to
reveal a decades-long corporate cover-up of pollution and ensuing health problems.
Apart from its obvious environmental theme this enlightening film speaks about the

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triumph of a unique individual whose determination, empathy, and sense of moral
duty ultimately outweighs her abrasiveness and lack of social graces.

Whale Rider (2003) & Winged Migration (2001)

-- one fictional, one documentary -- which changed the way we think about nature by
providing an intimacy with the animal kingdom never before caught on film. Whale
Rider tells the story of a girl destined to break the confines of her culture by becoming
the chief of her Maori tribe. And Winged Migration (using trained birds, planes and
gliders) captures the sensation of flying with the flock.

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I Heart Huckabees (2004)

About as strange a movie as one can imagine (Roger Ebert’s description is perfect:

“The movie is like an infernal machine that consumes all of the energy it generates,

saving the last watt of power to turn itself off”), I Heart Huckabees is not a movie for

everyone (perhaps it is in fact a movie for no one).

The film centers on two existential detectives and their work with a coincidence-

obsessed leader of the local Open Spaces Coalition and a young corporate employ-

ee whose life is falling apart. There’s also an anti-oil fireman who only rides a bicycle,

a French philosopher creeping around the edges of the story, an African refugee au-

tograph collector, and the human search for universal connectivity.

But despite all the manic craziness, the film and its characters take climate change

and environmental protection seriously. In fact, I Heart Huckabees is one of the rare

non-documentary films of the past decade that portrays an actual debate between

smart and serious adults over the values of conservation, the impacts of consumer-

ism, global poverty, and geopolitics.

What will it actually mean to reduce our oil consumption? Do the negative effects of

globalization outweigh the benefits of industry, jobs, or medicine? How is American

behavior responsible for the conflict in the Sudan? These real and difficult questions

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are all raised around a dinner table in a single scene. That the scene occurs in the

middle of a comedy about identity crises and a campaign to protect a rock from a

parking lot makes its presence even more memorable.

An Inconvenient Truth (Davis Guggenheim, 2006)

Unfortunately, for some this will always be remembered as the “Al Gore movie”., but
“An Inconvenient” is actually a very well-made and shocking documentary on global
warming. The fact that it had Al Gore in it only made it controversial and gave it a
wider release. Depending on whom you talk to, this was either the most important or
the most damaging film for the environmental movement.

It presented the scientific case for global warming in no uncertain terms, but it
seemed to polarize people on the subject. Nevertheless, it was historically important
in opening up funding for the documentary genre. In the attempt of making such a
harsh subject appealing, bits of eye-catching animation were introduced. Overall, a
documentary that is definitely worth seeing.

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Michael Clayton (Tony Gilroy, 2007)

“Michael Clayton” is more than just a courtroom drama or thriller. It is a movie about
conscience, ethics and environmental awareness. It is loosely based on a
multinational corporation of agricultural biotechnology.

The film chronicles the attempts of attorney Michael Clayton (George Clooney) – a
man the company usually brings in to “fix” things – to cope with a colleague’s
apparent mental breakdown and the corruption and intrigue surrounding a major
client of his law firm, who is being sued in a class action case over the effects of toxic
agrochemicals.

At first, Clayton just wants to the job that he has been paid a lot of money for, and
move on to the next case – this a healthy worth ethic for Michael and the health of his
conscience. But Arthur Edens (Tom Wilkinson) is not only his colleague but also his
friends, so Michael decides to dig deeper into the case and to try to figure out what is
going on. But as his case evolves, Arthur is killed and his own life is put to grave
danger.

This might seem like just another movie where the lead character is way in over his
head but the fresh approach, in which the story is presented to the viewer, makes it a
very enjoyable thriller that talks about some very important issues.

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The 11th Hour (Leila Conners & Nadia Conners, 2007)

Narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio, “The 11th Hour” is a little different from other
documentaries of the genre because it does limit itself to slamming the modern day
of society and blaming it for all the problems of the environment, but also offers
visionary and practical solutions for restoring the planet’s ecosystem. It also a notable
documentary for it features the contributions of politicians, scientist and
environmental activists, including Mikhail Gorbachev, and Stephen Hawking.

Like said earlier, the film’s premise is that the future of humanity is in jeopardy
because of humanity and that the solutions lie within us. The film tries to offer
solutions (some radical, some utopic some reasonable and practical) regarding
Global warming, deforestation, mass species extinction, and depletion of the oceans’
habitats.

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Wall-E (Andrew Stanton, 2008)

In a distant future, humans abandon Earth because there is too much trash on it.
WALL-E – a small waste collecting robot – lives alone on the planet with a pet
cockroach. He has quite a collection of things: lighters, a working iPod, a small ring
box (without the ring) and the last living plant. When a spaceship comes to earth and
drops a sleek and dangerous probe (EVE) to look for a living plant, WALL-E falls in
love with her. WALL-E gives her the plant, which makes EVE go into sleep mode.

When the spaceship comes to take EVE back, WALL-E decides goes with her. What
follows is an adventure onboard the Axiom, where people move on hovering chairs
and eat liquid food, which they suck up through a straw. Due to laziness, the people
on the ship have become so fat that they are unable to move. When the auto-pilot
computer, acting on hastily-given instructions sent many centuries before, tries to
prevent the people of Earth from returning by stealing the plant, WALL-E, EVE, the
portly captain and a band of broken robots stage a mutiny.

“Wall-E” was very well received by both the public and the critics not only because it
is a very touching love story but also because of the boldness of touching such a
dangerous subject such as human waste. To talk about this subject in an animation
film is truly an act of courage.

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 The Cove (Louie Psihoyos, 2009)

The subject of illegal and legal whale and dolphin hunting has always been very
delicate. Filmmakers wanting to tackle the subject were always very careful and
mostly danced around it. But with a documentary, “this dance” is not needed, as the
images and testimonies speak for themselves. “The Cove” analyzes and questions
dolphin hunting practices in Japan.

The film is a call to action to halt mass dolphin kills, to change the Japanese fishing
practices and to inform and educate the public about the risks, and increasing
hazard, of mercury poisoning from dolphin meat. The film is told from an ocean
conservationist’s point of view and it highlights the large number of dolphins that are
being killed every year. The migrating dolphins are herded into a cove where they are
netted and killed by means of spears and knives over the side of small fishing boats.

The film argues that dolphin hunting as practiced in Japan is unnecessary and cruel.
On this note, a group of activists infiltrate into a cove near Taiji, Japan to expose both
a shocking instance of animal abuse and a serious threat to human health.

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The Road (John Hillcoat, 2009)

Dystopic visions of the future pair well with environmental themes. John Hillcoat’s

adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s novel The Road exemplifies the dark, cold, and

unfriendly future of life after nature.

The Road tells the story of a man and his son as they scavenge for survival in the

wake of an unnamed catastrophic event that has destroyed the natural environment

and most of humanity. Of those who survived, some search the remains of the plane-

tary wasteland looking for cans of food and sodas. Others have grouped together into

roaming bands of cannibals. It’s a merciless vision of a time best avoided.

What separates The Road from the recent wave of post-apocalyptic cinema is the

quiet, foreboding determination of the film and its characters. Even after catastrophic

biological devastation, life moves slowly, allowing viewers plenty of time to inhabit a

world we start to see as one we need to protect if we are to save ourselves from each

other. That may sound preachy, but The Road is not a lesson tidily packaged for its

audience. It’s a simple story of love and sacrifice in a setting beyond horror.

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Avatar (James Cameron, 2009)

There is much in James Cameron’s epic sci-fi morality play Avatar to dislike. From its
unoriginal premise (see: Dances with Wolves) to its embrace of violence as the pre-
ferred mechanism for problem-solving, to its final, heavy-handed Cameron-esque
lesson, complete with speeches and battles and glorious sacrificial deaths.
Nevertheless, none of that erases the fact that Avatar is a beautifully imagined ode to
our deepest connections with the natural world. James Cameron spent $237 million
and almost a decade making an incomparable blockbuster plea for environmental
protection and respect for indigenous lands. That’s a truly remarkable effort. It is the
most expensive environmental advocacy effort in human history—and wildly success-
ful.

That Avatar earned almost $3 billion worldwide—making it the most successful film in
history—only reinforces the importance of the film. Fifty years from now, Avatar may
be remembered as having played an important cultural role in the era of climate
change politics; or perhaps it’ll be seen as a bloated, sentimental blockbuster.

Either way, the highest-grossing movie of all time also happens to be an environmen-
tal call to arms by a director who has compared climate change to “the threat the
United States faced in World War II.”

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Gasland (Josh Fox, 2010)

This was a very controversial documentary, as many scientists have disputed its
authenticity and even went as far as publicly slamming it for misleading its audience.

The director narrates his reception of a letter, from a natural gas company offering to
lease his family’s land for $100,000 to drill for gas. He then sets out to see how
communities are being affected in the west, where a natural gas drilling boom has
been underway for the last decade. He spent time with citizens in their homes and on
their land, who have experienced a variety of chronic health problems directly
traceable to contamination of their air, of their water wells or of surface water.

The second part of the documentary is more political than scientific, as it tries to
single out those responsible. Throughout the documentary, Fox reaches out to
scientists, politicians, and gas industry executives, in order to establish some kind of
truth.

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Vice (2018)

A fascinating insight into how warmonger Dick Cheney gathered more power than probably
any Vice President in US history. It shows how he worked with the energy industry to
influence appointments of vast oil fields in Iraq as the country was invaded by the US in
2003. My favourite thing about the film is how the actors cast play caricatures of their
Hollywood typecast, to cleverly comment on the glamorisation of political figures on the
Hollywood screen. Christian Bale, who plays Cheney, mimics his Batman voice; Steve Carell,
playing Donald Rumsfeld, is as Carell as it gets; and Sam Rockwell shines in his Southern
typecasting as George Bush Jr. A phenomenal must-see (though as with all Adam McKay,
could be far more nuanced!).

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DARK WATERS (2019)

Maybe inspiring isn't the right word for this film, which is based on the real-life story of
Robert Bilott, a corporate defense attorney who takes on one of the world's most powerful
chemical companies. The film follows Bilott's decision to take on DuPont after a visit from
Wilbur Tennant, a farmer whose cows are facing inexplicable diseases and death. A decade-

long journey ensues as Bilott uncovers DuPont's role in knowingly perpetuating the cancer-

causing chemical PFOA, known as Teflon, and dumping its toxic sludge which contaminated
the land and waters of this West Virginia town. This Erin Brokovich-esque film might leave
you more outraged than inspired, but hopefully the tenacity of Bilott and the story of
families like Wilbur (who had cancer and died of a heart attack) and his wife (who died of
cancer), might infuriate you right into action.

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