Pandora's Promise (2013)

Touches You

Overrated and overhyped

I enjoyed watching this film and would recommend other to give it a try , (as I am) but this movie, although enjoyable to watch due to the better than average acting fails to add anything new to its storyline that is all too familiar to these types of movies.

I didn’t really have many expectations going into the movie (good or bad), but I actually really enjoyed it. I really liked the characters and the banter between them.

Basically an extended interview with 3 or 4 people who were formerly against nuclear power and are now in favor of it. Their reasons seem to be mainly a matter of convenience. The one thing I was looking for, advancements in technology that address the serious problems with nuclear power, wasn't mentioned. And apparently this had no impact or these peoples change of heart. A lot of smoke and mirrors was on tap. The anti-nuclear side was represented by the biggest crackpot they could find (she claims millions died at Chernobyl). A discussion of the impracticality of cutting demand is set against a backdrop of cities with lighted signs. It is clearly stated that impoverished people around the world would have their lives miraculously improved if they had nuclear power. One of these people states flat out that being against nuclear power is being for fossil fuel. Unsubtantiated claims about the environmental impact of various energy sources are made. An unidentified device is used to show the numbers on it's display are different in different places. Through in some Democrat bashing and some nifty charts and graphs and you have "Pandoras Promise". I wonder if the makers of this film are familiar with the story of Pandoras Box?

The good: It's good to see a film that advocates science and reason for the purpose of spreading an important message that is far overdue. I think the interviewees were well selected from pools of both scientific experts and relate-able, intelligent, concerned citizens who all present the overwhelming and long-known evidence for nuclear power's safety and use. The bad: A 45-60 min version could have been equally informative. There's a lot of bad editing and poor documentary style, sometimes laughably so, and the narrative thread gets rather weak as it's stretched to meet minimum feature length. Many poor pro-nuclear arguments and some inflammatory material is thrown in the mix which diminishes film's documentary integrity.

The documentary film Pandora's Promise is addressing some of the most important questions humankind faces these days. The documentary fosters a healthy debate about these issues. Director Robert Stone achieved a landmark documentary bringing together an impressive wealth of facts, myths and contradicting world views. Most convincing are the five protagonists which bravely changed their believes from being fiercely anti-nuclear to a realistic pro-nuclear stance. Independent whether you are anti- or pro-nuclear energy everyone who is seriously interested in solving the poverty, energy and environmental crisis should watch Pandora's Promise.

Stone's earliest documentary used declassified footage acquired through the Freedom of Information Act to tell the story of the Bikini islanders and American servicemen affected by nuclear weapons testing. Pandora's Promise shows he remains a dedicated researcher twenty five years later. With captivating images of energy production from all over the world, Stone explores the contradictions of science and ideology related to climate change, urbanization, and nuclear power. The personal narratives of the people featured in the film provide an unapologetic point of view on disruption in the historic environmental narrative. Beautifully shot, enjoyable to watch, the film's highlighting of counter intuitive information will present inconvenient truths that inspire conversation after the credits roll.