I suck because I went to a screening of Arctic Tale over a month ago — then thought I’d write about it closer to launch date, then totally forgot.
This is the prob with screenings way before the launch date.
Anyway — Arctic Tale is sorta like March of the Penguins — perhaps because both films’re from National Geographic Films — except with a more environmental bent.
Narrated by Queen Latifah, Arctic Tale’s a documentary that follows Nanu, a lil polar bear perhaps even cuter than Knut, and Seela, an ugly-cute walrus, as they grow up in an arctic landscape. Their habitat’s getting increasingly warmer — making survival harder and harder.
You watch with bated breath as these cute mammals try to make it through winter after winter, despite the warmer weather that makes it difficult to hunt, harder to swim from berg to land, etc.
Do they make it? Do their sibs and relatives make it? You’ll have to watch to find out –
Unfortunately, the film really takes a sad U-turn for the worse at the end. As the credits roll, lil kids’re featured saying stuff similar to “Chage your lightbulb to a CFL, and save the polar bears!”
Dude — The polar bears’re fucked at this point. Yes, I heart Nanu — but even Nanu’s kid’s unlikely to live out its lifespan. Global warming’s picking up, and while lil changes are good, changing one lightbulb isn’t going to actually save the polar bears. Right now, it’s about realizing we’ve really really fucked up, we’ve pretty much ensured the decimation of the polar bear population, and we’ve gotta (yes, make personal changes too, but) push for some huge, governmental, national and international changes to prevent a mass extinction.
One ironic part of the film promotions: Starbucks is helping promote the eco-film. As Jasmin notes, “we would probably take them more seriously if Starbucks’ paper carriers weren’t printed in China and assembled in Indonesia. Another case of do as we say, not as we do?”
In fact, Starbucks’ so psyched ’bout this PR opp that they’re holding a “National Day of Discussion” on August 15, 2007: “these friendly and informative discussions are designed to engage local participants in a dialogue about how to modify their impact on the planet by making simple, everyday decisions.”
If you attend, note that you’re making these simple everyday decisions, and ask why Starbucks isn’t making these simple everyday decisions as a company.
On the upside, Starbucks’ sponsorship money’ll at least go toward promoting the film as well as some great orgs behind it, such as Earthwatch Institute and Conservation International.
