Crude Makes Compelling Case Against Big Oil

Doc tells of disastrous effects of oil extraction
By Matt Cantor,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 11, 2009 1:11 PM CDT

Crude is a hard-hitting documentary about the ravages of the oil industry—Chevron is the villain here—on indigenous people in Ecuador. Critics are wowed:

  • “Here’s a powerhouse of a documentary that makes you feel mad as hell and unwilling to take it anymore,” writes Peter Travers in Rolling Stone.

  • “Too many filmmakers seem to think that a noble cause, a good heart and a digital video camera are all that is required for an effective documentary,” AO Scott writes in the New York Times. “Luckily,” director Joe Berlinger “has both a strong narrative instinct and a keen eye for incongruous, evocative and powerful images.”
  • “Berlinger presents both sides of the case as objectively as possible, never inserting himself into the narrative, and turning the audience, in effect, into a jury,” writes Scott Foundas in the Village Voice.
(More crude oil stories.)

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