No Impact Man
No Impact Man
Colin Beavan decides to completely eliminate his personal impact on the environment for the next year. It means eating vegetarian, buying only local food, and turning off the refrigerator. It also means no elevators, no television, no cars, busses, or airplanes, no toxic cleaning products, no electricity, no material consumption, and no garbage. No problem – at least for Colin – but he and his family live in Manhattan. So when his espresso-guzzling, retail-worshipping wife Michelle and their two-year-old daughter are dragged into the fray, the No Impact Project has an unforeseen impact of its own.--©Official Site
3.2 out of 5 based on 9 reviews
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Omniscore:
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| Certificate |
15 |
| Genre |
Documentary |
| Director |
Laura Gabbart and Justin Schein |
| Cast |
Colin Beavan Michelle Conlin |
| Studio |
Dogwoof |
| Release Date |
September 2010 |
| Running Time |
93 mins |
| |
Colin Beavan decides to completely eliminate his personal impact on the environment for the next year. It means eating vegetarian, buying only local food, and turning off the refrigerator. It also means no elevators, no television, no cars, busses, or airplanes, no toxic cleaning products, no electricity, no material consumption, and no garbage. No problem – at least for Colin – but he and his family live in Manhattan. So when his espresso-guzzling, retail-worshipping wife Michelle and their two-year-old daughter are dragged into the fray, the No Impact Project has an unforeseen impact of its own.--©Official Site
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Reviews
The Observer
Philip French
“It's like a real-life American version of The Good Life but funnier, less smug and more instructive.”
03/09/2010
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The Times
Dominic Wells
“Brilliantly edited, this is an object lesson in making the political personal.”
02/09/2010
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Variety
John Anderson
“Proof that "eco" and "entertainment" aren't mutually exclusive, "No Impact Man" may be a socially progressive, environmentally conscious film, but it goes down far easier than, say, an all-natural, fiber-enriched peanut butter sandwich without a glass of soy milk. It's that rare doc (these days) that could go theatrical, largely because it's a film about a couple, more than a movement.”
18/09/2010
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The Los Angeles Times
Betsy Sharkey
“The structure of the film works like a basic primer as Beavan begins to analyze the family's lifestyle excesses seeking a range of solutions, from complete elimination to alternatives. There is no scientific rigor here; still it's hard not to be caught up in his enthusiasm...”
11/09/2009
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The New York Times
A. O. Scott
“Taken as a polemical documentary championing environmentally conscious action, “No Impact Man,” directed by Laura Gabbert and Justin Schein, is of little interest and less utility. It provides no new scientific insights or political arguments...“No Impact Man,” however, is not really an eco-documentary. There are plenty of those. But there are not many films that so unsparingly (if also, perhaps, inadvertently) expose the confused power dynamics of a certain kind of modern middle-class marriage. ”
11/09/2009
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Empire Magazine
Patrick Peters
“An intriguing documentary offering trial and experiment. Somewhat didactic, it is not the greatest of cinematic exercises.”
14/09/2010
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The Sunday Times
Alistair McKay
“This documentary will appeal mostly to the converted.”
05/09/2010
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The Daily Telegraph
David Gritten
“Amiable enough, though it resembles a marketing tool for Beavan’s book about his project.”
02/09/2010
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The Guardian
Peter Bradshaw
“Superdownsize Me could be the subtitle of this eco-conscious documentary, presented in all an too familiar format; it advances important and laudable ideas, but in a cliched, gimmicky way.”
02/09/2010
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