10 Best Documentary Films To Watch On Disney+
4. Before The Flood
There is a trend among Hollywood that, at some point in an actor's career, they will appear either on screen or as a narrator, in a documentary of some type. Leonardio Di Caprio is no exception to this and yet, however, Before The Flood is anything but a puff piece of lip service.
The film is a stark and moving depiction of the effects of global warming on the planet, focusing on Climate Change Deniers (specifically those among the United States political elite) and the benefits of imposing carbon taxes.
The film is self-aware, acknowledging the carbon footprint that the filmmakers imposed on the planet to make this. They do however state that they paid a voluntary carbon tax to offset this.
Di Caprio cares. That is evident in the watching of this. He describes an image that stayed with him from infancy to adulthood, namely The Garden Of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch. The painting depicts the rise and fall of Earth, something Di Caprio highlights may be on the way, but is avoidable.
The film is a success both in terms of delivering a heartfelt message and making a watchable story. There is a conscious knowledge of keeping the audience on side and, with that, the interviews don't veer toward overly dramatic. The music is more than just background mood setting. The images are stark.
It was released in 2016 in the run up to the presidential election and is perhaps more relevant than ever in 2020.