TITLE: #9 Home
Is a 2009 documentary by Yann Arthus-Bertrand. The film is almost
entirely composed of aerial shots of various places on Earth.
It shows the diversity of life on Earth and how humanity is threatening the
ecological balance of the planet.
The documentary chronicles the present day state of the
Earth, its climate and how we as the dominant species have long-term
repercussions on its future. A theme expressed throughout the documentary is
that of linkage -how all organisms and
the Earth are linked in a "delicate but crucial" natural balance with
each other, and how no organism can be self-sufficient.
The
first 15 minutes include footage of the beginning of the natural world,
starting with single-celled algae developing
at the edges of volcanic springs. By showing algae's essential role in the
evolution of photosynthesis,
it also explores the innumerable species of plants which all have their origins
in this one-celled life form.
In the rest of the first hour of the film, the documentary
takes on a more human-oriented focus, showing the agricultural revolution and
its impacts, before moving on to talk about the harnessing of oil, leading to
fire, industry, cities and inequality gaps like never before. It portrays the
current predicament regarding cattle ranches, deforestation, food and water
shortages, the use of non-renewable "fossil water", the
over-quarrying crisis and the shortage of energy, namely electricity. Cities
such as New York City, Las Vegas, Los Angeles,
Shenzhen, Mumbai, Tokyo and Dubai are
used as examples of the mismanagement and waste of energy, water and food. The
recession of marshlands and glaciers are shown in vast aerial shots of Antarctica, The North Pole and Africa,
while mass emigration and refugee counts are shown currently and forecast in
the event that these events remains unchanged.
It is at this point that the film begins to focus on global warming and
the carbon crisis. Home shows how melting glaciers, rising sea
levels and changing weather patterns are ravaging the people who have least to
do with climate change, but also how it soon will affect rich populous areas.
Here, about three minutes of film is given to displaying
harsh facts in large white text on a black background followed by a video
representation of the fact. This is followed by a positive conclusion. The
documentary claims to show the "awful truths" regarding our impact on
the Earth, but also what we are now doing to combat and reverse it, including:
renewable energy, the creation of more and more national parks, international
co-operation between various nations on environmental issues and the extra
education and reform being had across the globe in response to the current
problems facing the earth.
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