It is fair to say that, as of late, things are not going well for Mother Earth. She is sick, and folks keep refusing to bring her to the doctor. Unfortunately for the future of Earth’s health, over the past several years, countless individuals have struggled to find the motivation to discuss, or even think about, the impending climate crisis, instead opting to focus on the more pressing problems of their daily lives. To be frank, even if the human population had the motivation to tackle climate change, the individuals in power, from politicians to the heads of corporations, will likely choose to let the planet suffer in order to reap the monetary rewards of continuous production.
Science fiction has always been the film genre least likely to shy awayfrom intellectual content. This is absolutely the case withRubikon, a recently released science fiction movie with a strong undercurrent of environmentalist themes. InRubikon, three scientists – Hannah (Julia Franz Richter), Gavin (George Blagden), and Dimitri (Mark Ivanir) – find themselves stranded aboard a spaceship. At the same time, the Earth below is completelyconsumed with a mysterious fog. The film, which focuses primarily on the moral reckoning the astronauts are forced to engage with as they discuss returning to Earth and attempting to combat the potentially lethal fog, serves as an excellent allegory for climate change and the problems around combating it.
Here’s howRubikonserves as an important warning for us all.
Rubikon Presents a Terrifying Reality
Due to increasingly pressing and massively concerning realities of climate change, which include, but are not limited to horrendous natural disasters, the utter decimation of the planet’s more fragile ecosystems, and ultimately, as prominent global food supply sources, like the fish found in coral reefs, start to dwindle, a refugee crisis the likes of which the world has never seen is on the horizon. Because of these horrifying new realities, there will continue to be more and moremovies made about climate changein the coming years.
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Some of them might be a little hamfisted (though, to be fair, the politics surrounding climate change the world over can be quite ridiculous), but others can strike a chord with even those individuals who are entirely opposed to environmentalism.Rubikoncan absolutely count itself among the latter of these films. The obvious allegory to the climate crisis comes in the form of the all-consuming fog that smothers the Earth. However, the film also discusses the ways in which the Earth’s corporations, in light of the catastrophe, are able to seize control of a completely vulnerable population.
Rubikon Explores Human Nature and the Scientific Process
Scientists and their experimentsmake for excellent film fodder, and they are often the focus of science fiction movies. InRubikon, the focus is almost entirely on three scientists, two of whom had arrived at the spaceship shortly before the fog consumed the Earth. The film is not an action romp in the vein of Christopher Nolan’sInterstellar, a film that deals with similar themes. Rather, it chooses to focus on the deliberations of the three stranded scientists.
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Instead of focusing on CGI spectacleor interstellar antics,Rubikonpresents plainly the deliberations of these scientists as they decide whether or not to return to Earth. In doing this, the film furthers its environmentalist themes. Discussions surrounding climate change are not always exciting. In fact, they’re rather difficult and oftentimes tedious. However, they are absolutely necessary.
Additionally, the film shows the ways in which factions can appear among those who, on paper, are best suited to solve the planet’s ills.
The scientists inRubikonare in a state of near-constant disagreement. This is furthered by interpersonal drama, as the two scientists who recently arrived at the spaceship fall in love, causing a certain amount of friction between the couple and the remaining scientist. This serves as a metaphor for the ways in which human nature will almost always be a factor in the scientific process. Personal concerns, like the potential for financial gain or the desire for mainstream notoriety, can cloud the judgment of even the most brilliant scientist.
ThoughRubikonwas a mixed bagin terms of critical reviews and mainstream success, it was incredibly effective in getting its environmentalist message across to audiences. The climate change allegories are obvious, but they differentiate themselves from other climate crisis films by presenting certain nuances. It explores the moral implications of potentially sacrificing one’s life in order to better serve the planet, as well as the ways in which there is dissent among the scientific community as to the best ways to tackle the impending crisis.
Rubikonshould serve as a warning to all of us, and its message will only continue to become more and more relevant.
