The Age Of Stupid is a 90-minute film about climate change, set in the future. Oscar-nominated Pete Postlethwaite stars as a man living alone in the devastated world of 2055, looking back at Earth wondering why we didn't stop it whilst we had the chance.
I found this trailer for the film, to be released on March 20th 09, on Kate Andrews blog. The trailer looks like it could be a good film, but is it simply that, just a film? I totally agree that the issue of climate change must be brought to the attention of the public, but who today in the Westernised world, where this film will surely be targeting, does not know already. I applaud the director and Spanner Films for attempting to use such a popular, diverse media medium of the cinema to reach the public, but is this really the most effective way? Is this even the right content? I fear that the message in "The Age Of Stupid" could be shelved away in the viewers minds never to be seen again once they leave the cinema. Will it become another interesting, enjoyable film such as "The Day After Tomorrow" and the long list of TV programs along the same lines. Is it all too easy to separate what we see on TV and cinema as being a show or performance, people feel like these are just films like Star Wars or Batman and have no connotations in the real world.
I hope this is not the case, and I suppose even the making of the film shows Sustainability's transition into mainstream culture, but lets not think that telling people how bad things will be over and over will be an effective way of changing how we currently live.
P
I actually think you need to use fear or humour for these sorts of issues to enter the consciousness of lazy, set-in-their-ways couch potatoes like me. A TV ad that really got to me was the gov. one 'Act on CO2'. It sells a powerfully visual message that the world will burn if we don't act now.
ReplyDeleteAnd when I say humour I mean black humour (no examples to hand).