Crude (2009 film)

Crude

Film still
Directed by Joe Berlinger
Produced by Joe Berlinger
Michael Bonfiglio
J.R. DeLeon
Richard Stratton
Music by Wendy Blackstone
Cinematography Pocho Alvarez
Joe Berlinger
Michael Bonfiglio
Juan Diego Pérez
Editing by Alyse Ardell Spiegel
Distributed by Entendre Films
Radical Media
Red Envelope Entertainment
Third Eye Motion Picture
First Run Features
Release date(s) January 18, 2009 (2009-01-18) (Sundance)
Running time 100 minutes
Country United States
Language English

Crude is a 2009 American documentary film directed and produced by Joe Berlinger.[1] It follows a two year portion of an ongoing class action lawsuit against the Chevron Corporation in Ecuador.

Contents

Synopsis

The film follows the progress during 2006 and 2007 of a $27 billion legal case brought against the Chevron Corporation following the drilling of the Lago Agrio oil field, a case also known as the “Amazon Chernobyl”.

The plaintiffs of the class action lawsuit are 30,000 Ecuadorians living in the Amazonian rainforest they claim has been polluted by the oil industry. In addition to the legal struggle, Crude shows interviews from both sides, and explores the influence of media support, celebrity activism, the power of multinational corporations, the shifting power in Ecuadorian politics, and rapidly-disappearing indigenous cultures on the case.

The film concludes with the prediction that the legal case will not be resolved for another decade or so.

Interviews

Subpoena of footage

On May 6, 2010 federal judge Lewis Kaplan sided with a petition submitted by Chevron and ruled that Berlinger turn over more than 600 hours of original footage created throughout during the film's production. Chevron had sought to subpoena the footage as part of the ongoing lawsuit discussed in the film. Berlinger's legal team has maintained that the footage is protected by reporters' privilege and has indicated it intends to appeal the court's decision.[2]

Reception

Critical response

Crude has been reviewed in the New York Times,[3] in LA Weekly,[4] AlterNet,[5] and by Howard Zinn.[6]

As of 23 March 2010, the movie review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gave Crude a 95% "fresh" rating (100% for "top critics").

Accolades

Winner[7]

Release

Crude premiered on January 18, 2009 at the Sundance Film Festival and had its theatrical premiere on September 9, 2009, at the IFC Center in New York City.[9] Many more cities and dates are scheduled as well.[10]

Film festivals (partial list)

See also

References

  1. ^ Crude at the Internet Movie Database
  2. ^ New York Times, 6 May 2010, Judge Rules that Filmmaker Must Give Footage to Chevron
  3. ^ New York Times, 22 January 2009, In the Snows of Sundance, a Marked Chill in the Air
  4. ^ http://blogs.laweekly.com/ladaily/foundas-on-film/sundance-film-festival-2009-cr/
  5. ^ AlterNet, 26 August 2009, 'Crude': The Film Chevron Doesn't Want You to See
  6. ^ http://www.crudethemovie.com/
  7. ^ Complete list of awards
  8. ^ Edited by Alyse Ardell Spiegel
  9. ^ http://www.ifccenter.com/films/crude/
  10. ^ [1]

External links