Collapse (2009)

I watched this movie, mostly because of the reviews I read here. What a joke. While I may agree (to a point) with the message this guy was trying to get across, I do not with his need to lie to support it. From citing false prophets (the "great scientist" David Pimentel is an ENTOMOLOGIST (a bug expert) from Cornell University, and a well known climate change denier. He's not a chemist, nor a physicist, so he has no qualifications to pontificate about energy, fuels, climate, etc.), to misusing science (the laws of thermodynamics don't apply to economics), to perpetuating false concepts (like ethanol only being produced from corn, when countries like Brazil have turned around their economies producing it from sugarcane), or stating half truths (it's true that it takes more energy to produce ethanol than the energy it delivers, but that's also true for gasoline, which delivers about half the energy needed for its manufacture), or just straight lies (tidal energy extraction is not limited to the coastline, and tidal generators are already working in many places around the World, and have been for years, or "internal combustion engines can not be made to work with anything but oil", when there are thousands of people around the World driving their cars on alternative fuels, from ethanol, to biodiesel, even to used cooking oil), the whole "documentary" is just an awful example of irresponsible fear mongering. Finally, for those who are serious about learning what really produced this last economic crisis, I recommend you watch the movie "Inside Job", which is a real documentary about it, not some conspiracy nut's ego trip.

I consider this a must see for everyone. This is not the first time I've heard these types of commentary but this is a lot more detail that I find hard to hear but required to hear. We're pumped with pseudo "news" that's filtered and crafted often with an agenda and the truth put out there is often hidden in the overload of information available today. Just be a smart citizen and human being and educate yourself at what is happening around you, whether or not you see it or if it involves you, because sooner or later it will, and you shouldn't be surprised or caught off guard. I don't think most people are ready to hear stuff like this and I get it.. I lived in a bubble for a long time but it's time to wake up and get real.

While reading the synopsis for 'Collapse', one could never expect the variety of feelings that it creates. It is a seemingly intellectual documentary on the surface, focusing on the never-ending stream of consciousness from Michael Ruppert. He sits alone in a warehouse with director Chris Smith as the cameras roll. But as the story progresses, I saw that this film is not just about energy depletion, the over-consumption of oil, and the global economy run wild, but instead about paranoia, fear, and loneliness.Michael Ruppert is an investigative journalist and retired police officer. He speaks with a confidence and poise that betrays an undertone of worry and concern. Initially, we learn from Michael about the complexities of the global ecosystem, our never-ending dependence on oil, and the machinations of governments gone awry. To a point, everything that he says is believable. It's obvious that he is well-educated and well-intentioned, and that as a viewer there are things to learn from him.Smith intervenes though, and the ramblings of what starts to look like a mad man progress further and further into darkness. The director has cobbled together several days worth of footage into a masterpiece display of editing. And now we enter spoiler territory. Just when Ruppert mesmerizes with his impressive repository of factual insight on the world around us, the shell starts to crack. It becomes evident that Ruppert himself is amidst a collapse. The title is both the subject and the metaphor of Ruppert's life.This is where 'Collapse' started to play games with my mind. At one point, Ruppert's confident display of reasons we should all be worried about the world around us are believable. But towards the end of the movie, it's obvious that he's completely lost, perhaps even borderline hysterical. But then what am I, the viewer? At one point I was ready to jump off the diving board, thinking about what my next move would be when the United States collapses into some sort of anarchist state. And then I realized how silly I was being… or was I? After all, everything is at stake.This movie is a masterful portrait of a lonely and troubled man who wants to warn the world. 'Collapse' simultaneously informs us of a cavalcade of anecdotal evidence and data that any rational person would be worried about. What's even better about this movie are its multiple interpretations. It's a sort of 'Rashomon' pushed upon the viewers. There are people who will watch this and think that Ruppert is a genius who bears worthwhile observations that must be heeded. But there are other people who will watch it and come to the conclusion that he is falling apart at the seams. And yet more there are people who will discount it from the get-go, labeling Ruppert a conspiracy theorist and a lunatic.I recommend this movie highly. It's a chameleon of a film that could be described as a documentary, a drama, a thriller, or even a suspense movie. Anyone who wants to see a good socio-political commentary or complex character study will enjoy it. In addition, it will challenge the viewers thought process.

"Collapse" is an eighty minute diatribe by Michael Ruppert, a former LAPD officer and longtime investigative journalist who has been working for years to piece together what he believes to be an imminent doomsday scenario.The film simply consists of Ruppert sitting in a warehouse whilst he rants at length about various issues. Spliced into his speech are bits of archival and news footage, all of which add spice and evidence to his claims. Those familiar with writings on peak oil, global oil reserves, Ponzi scheme economies, alternative energy, gold etc will be familiar with much of which Ruppert says here, but the sheer energy of his monologue creates a frightening picture nevertheless.There's currently a huge market for these types of documentaries, which promise jaded audiences a glimpse into some master conspiracy or doomsday prophecy. These docs typically rely on all kinds of audience psychoses, so it's refreshing to see one in which the sanity of the subject is itself the subject. In this regard, the "Collapse" of the film's title refers, not only to the collapse of our society as we know it, but the possible mental collapse of Ruppert. Is he a seer or a madman? A bit of both, the film seems to say. On one hand, we see the toll Ruppert's line of work and obsessions have had on his body, mind and life, on the other, we accept that this is an intelligent man who knows what he's talking about. Indeed, Ruppert's parents worked in government intelligence and he himself has revealed several government conspiracies in the past (in which the CIA was implicated in a drug trafficking operation and various assassinations), all of which make him one of the biggest whistle-blowers in the world. Combine this with the fact that he was a LA cop, author and investigative journalist, and it seems that Ruppert is a man of standing and worth taking seriously. With his hard-nosed, critical and inquisitive nature, Ruppert essentially comes across as a Philip Marlowe styled private investigator, which is fitting, as what he's doing is battling the very conspiratorial universe of noir.And yet the sensationalist style of the documentary, itself verging on parody, dares us not to take Ruppert seriously. Dares us to see him as a madman. What "Collapse" ultimately argues is, not only does it take a special madness to be drawn to these documentaries, but that those who reject Ruppert's foresight (ie those lost in denial and upholding false realities) themselves become the madmen if and when Ruppert is proved right.8/10 - Worth one viewing.