Before the Flood (film)

Did You Know?

• The film's soundtrack features compositions by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, Mogwai, and Gustavo Santaolalla.
• To offset the carbon emissions of the production, the filmmakers paid a voluntary carbon tax.
• The film takes a closer look into the possibility of a carbon tax benefiting the American nation.

Content

The film follows DiCaprio as he visits regions worldwide to observe the effects of global warming. He narrates his encounters and archive footage, repeatedly referencing Hieronymus Bosch's 15th-century triptych The Garden of Earthly Delights, which hung above his crib and serves as an analogy for potential ruin. The documentary also partly documents the production of DiCaprio's 2015 film The Revenant. DiCaprio focuses on climate change denial among U.S. corporate lobbyists and politicians. An interview with astronaut Piers Sellers, who had stage IV pancreatic cancer, discusses his wish to publicize global warming's perils before his death on December 23, 2016.

Cast

The documentary features DiCaprio alongside figures like Piers Sellers, Barack Obama, Pope Francis, and Elon Musk, among many others including Sunita Narain, Anote Tong, John Kerry, and Ban Ki-Moon. Additional subjects in DVD extras or deleted scenes include Mark Z. Jacobson, Steven Chu, Andrew Baker, Ben Kirtman, and Enric Sala. These bonus segments address topics such as education, politics, coral, hurricanes, and the theme of urgency.

Broadcast and streaming

The film was made freely available online from October 30 to November 6, 2016, leading up to U.S. Election Day, and aired on the National Geographic Channel in 171 countries as well as on some national television channels. It is subtitled in 45 languages. The day after release, it had been viewed more than 2 million times; within weeks, it had been viewed by more than 60 million people, making it arguably one of the most watched documentaries in history. As of November 2022, it is available for streaming on Disney+.

Reception

The film received mostly positive reviews. On Rotten Tomatoes, it holds a 75% approval rating from 32 reviews, with an average score of 7.0/10 and a critics' consensus calling it a fervent call to action. On Metacritic, it scored 63 out of 100 from 10 critics, indicating generally favorable reviews. W described it as surprisingly moving, while The Guardian called it a heartfelt, decent, educational documentary about the most important issue of our time. Variety praised its ability to assemble a watchable and comprehensive account with undeniable urgency, noting its success in focusing on ground-level victims of climate change.