Leonardo DiCaprio: Before the Flood

I am glad that this documentary was made, even though I felt it was talking to someone other than me. The movie is focused on America (even though what it preaches is relevant all over the world), and much of the information is not really ground breaking if you are already concerned about the environment. I am not complaining about this, as that is probably the best target audience to try to reach for a documentary like this. There's no reason to make more documentaries preaching to the choir.

The documentary itself is mostly well made. Leonardo travels from one place to the other, and talks with some big names. Some of it feels kind of irrelevant, and the best parts is when Leonardo talks with people who are not that famous, especially the one subject that shows her frustration. Some of the places he travels are interesting to see, though it's mostly quick visits, and at times they feel more like backdrops than important set pieces. Despite the documentary jumping from one theme to the next, it holds together quite well, and Leonardo's journey functions well as a mean to take the viewer through all the information.

Personally I would have liked a documentary that was a bit more science heavy, maybe like a combination of the nature trips that Leonardo goes on here, and the presentation from Al Gore's film. But I can understand why they went in the direction they went here, and I hope it resonates with a lot of people that have not thought much about this.

Being the objective of this documentary to raise awareness and support DiCaprio's activity as a "UN messenger of peace" and environmental activist, I believe it really achieved its goal as it is truly a breathtaking, eye-opening film which urges the viewer to strive for a change.

Throughout the documentary we are presented with shocking information, images and educated people's opinion on the matter (like world leaders and scientists) which adds credibility to it. Leonardo DiCaprio and his team do not spare criticism on some of the biggest countries (like the US) policies and on the fossil fuel industry.

Leo's charisma and ability to persuade and entertain the public allied to his drive as an environmental activist just leaves you glued to your seat thinking what can you do to make a change. I believe this really is the kind of information that should be more out there and DiCaprio's celebrity-status, as well as all the other people interviewed, is great for visibility.

If anything, I just wish this was a mini-series to know even more about this issue the world is facing, which might just be the biggest one it ever did...

In the end, it's not about who pollutes more or less, we all have to make a personal change of lifestyle and mindset. I know i'm no where close to an ideal amount of consumption, but I want to try just a little harder to be more mindful of what I put into the environment and become a better steward of our beautiful planet and people. Great film. Very serious tones and messages throughout, but anything short of serious wouldn't make any real change, in my opinion. Being able to see some of the various examples of how fossil fuel, coal, and energy consumption negatively effects the environment reinforced the core messages very well. There was quite a lot of focus on DiCaprio in both face time with the cameras and the spotlight of the work that he has been doing in this field, but it is overshadowed by the bigger picture, which is addressing the problem that climate change poses on humanity and actually taking action.

Almost a decade ago, Leonardo DiCaprio narrated and produced The 11th Hour, which covered the same ground as this documentary. The United Nations designated DiCaprio a "UN Messenger of Peace" in 2014 and tasked him with getting the word out on Climate Change. That is just what he does. Here is a heartfelt, decent and educational documentary about the most important issue of our time: Climate Change.

Filmmakers are intelligent in their use of the biggest asset they have: not only do they keep their movie star on screen, they work hard to tie viewers concern for the environment up with his biography. Leonardo DiCaprio proves his own commitment to the cause; conceding that his own celebrity status draws attention to the topic, but allows the naysayers to say that he is a shallow movie star and therefore this whole issue must be a joke. Though, I have to admit that I was a bit disappointed that the movie lacks such personality. The film does have the unique access to a DiCaprio that is not on the set of a fictional project or in an awards ceremony tux, but he adds nothing aside from his name and face.

Correctly identifying the most important issue of our time, DiCaprio uses his authority and charisma to travel the world and highlight men impact on our planet. Indeed, he travels the globe examining our fossil-fuel addiction. Where the film succeeds the most is by focusing on the ground-level victims of climate change, such as the polar bears of the Arctic for instance. Of course, the documentary is enforcing the 2015 Paris agreement, in order to develop the wind and solar power.

So many climate documentaries have passed through cinemas and aired on TV, it's impossible to believe that lack of information is the obstacle to change in public policy. This documentary seems important to me as a shift in public opinion has to be achieved to change the political classes opinion. Finally, Before the Flood foes have one marvellous scene that its contemporaries won't have. Former Astronaut Dr. Piers Sellers sits down with DiCaprio in a dark room that is illuminated by a graphic of planet Earth and talks about how his experience in Space helped him understand the massiveness and beauty of the world. He highlights that if we can all see our presence in the world on a much larger scale than what is in front of us, we might be able to change our way of life before it is too late.

Overall, Before the Flood is a serious, substantial and very important piece of work.

A well laid out doc by Leo DiCaprio and Fisher Stevens about the world we are facing today.

From the moment the movie opens we get a little glimpse at Leo's life as he talks about a Bosh painting that his father hung on the top of his crib, that started his passion for environmental issues. From then on, we realize that his documentary is not just for us it was for him as well.

Leo does not try to make himself out as an environmental expert. This is something I admire greatly about the documentary. A lot of us are being influenced on both sides of the argument about the climate change, and when Leo became the UN Ambassador of peace for this topic, he knew he needed to study up on the process, so he did it with Before the Flood. Leo travels all over the world to discover just how bad the problem actually is and what we can do to stop it.

But this doc is all about informing. Leo does not pretend to have the answers by a long shot. One of my fav parts of this movie was a discussion Leo has with an environmentalist from India whose calling out the United States for their part in Global Warming. Leo never defends his home country only comes clean about how realistic or unrealistic it is for America to go clean.

There was this one part of the film where Leo meets with his agricultural guy telling me that America needs to change it's diet. Pretty much telling me that I need to stop buying things like Doritos, which is a small part of a big picture, and by odd coincidence, I just happen to have a big bag of cool ranch in my lap. Granted, it would not hurt my waist line to give up the nachos, but there are other food products that poor Americans like myself would starve if they suddenly disappeared. Proving that this environmental issue for me anyway is not a black and white issue.

Leo created something that does what a documentary is suppose to do. His agenda was to inform you about the climate change and that's what he does, and he does it without having to make anyone look evil (well not too evil anyway). it's all about laying out the facts and seeing what we can do with that info.

Much respect.