TORONTO 2009: Chris Smith's COLLAPSE

Acclaimed filmmaker Chris Smith (AMERICAN MOVIE, THE YES MEN) returns to nonfiction (after a brief dalliance with narrative THE POOL) to tell the story of Michael Ruppert, a former LAPD officer who predicted the world economic freefall on his self-published newsletter.  In COLLAPSE, Smith allows Ruppert to hold forth on what's coming next.  (Spoiler alert: we're fucked.)

In a short review, IONCINEMA's Eric Lavallee predicts COLLAPSE will be the doc that people remember from TIFF '09:

"(I)n my estimation this might be the doc film that comes out of TIFF with the best of chances for a theatrical release.  COLLAPSE will not only find a distributor to back the gloomy, Errol Morris' FOG OF WAR-like portrait, but will be a contender for major kudos whatever year it gets submitted to Oscar."

Joshua Rothkopf, writing at Time Out New York, was riveted:

"COLLAPSE takes the nerve-racking theories of Michael Ruppert, a doom theorist, and places the chain smoker front and center to deliver them personally for 82 riveting minutes. Ruppert predicted the economic meltdown with great specificity; he also sees the end of police forces, road systems, air-traffic control and capitalism—within the next 20 to 50 years. You can’t take your eyes off him, even if he does seem a little crazy. (He’s not crazy, just seriously impassioned and probably right.)"

Scott Tobias at the Onion's A/V Club grades the film an "A":

"Smith has enough respect for his audience to allow them to sort out whether he’s a soothsayer or a crackpot. It’s possible to come out of the film thinking, “Oh my God, we’re all doomed,” but there’s also a strong suggestion that Ruppert has walled himself into his own point-of-view by accepting only the information that supports his sweeping theories. And in several immensely poignant moments, we can also see an angry, lonely, vulnerable man whose life epitomizes the title as much as the globe does. There are many layers to the man and the movie, and I for one left the theater shaken."

At Row Three, Mike Rot gives the film 4 1/2 stars (out of 5):

"Despite its focus on the now commonplace concerns for modern society’s unsustainable growth, the film ignites the imagination in a way so few talking head documentaries ever achieve. At its core is Michael C Ruppert, CIA whistleblower and activist reporter, who, like a modern day Morpheus, pulls back the veil of reality to show in a stark light the underpinning make-believe that sustains our hope in a sustainable status quo. According to him, any perception of stability at present exists solely because those in power see no political advantage to alert the public of how dire the situation has become. Not even Obama can get you out of this one, he warns; this collapse runs deep and is inevitable, and it is happening right now. The effect is assaultive, in rapid-fire succession Ruppert unloads his thesis on the audience who are left to recoil as the gravity of the situation deepens. Lacking any familiarity with the issues of ‘peak oil’ prior to seeing this film, my alarm watching the movie was at an optimal high."

Phil Brown at martiniboys.com calls COLLAPSE "easily the finest movie" Smith has made since AMERICAN MOVIE:

"What’s fascinating about the movie is this tension between Ruppert’s brilliant proclamations and occasionally wacky comments. By the end it’s difficult to decide how to feel about Ruppert. The man is either a genius or a lunatic, but he’s an incredible character regardless. Collapse is a fascinating documentary that examines both the world’s current problem with consumption and an incredible fringe intellectual. It’s hard to imagine a better documentary being released this year."

Comments

[Janet Pierson]

Great to see you giving attention to Chris Smith, though I would hardly call The Pool a "dalliance." It's superb. And keep in mind, Chris' first breakthrough film was the narrative feature, American Job.

[LindaLou]

Michael Ruppert, star of movie CoLLapse, found guilty of sexual harassment.

Explicit 79-page Oregon 9/16/09 Final Order in Ruppert sexual harassment case is at ----
http://www.boli.state.or.us/BOLI/LEGAL/docs/FOpdffiles/From_the_Wilderness.pdf

Oregon Labor Commissioner's press release states: The most startling incident occurred when Ruppert
came to Gerken’s office door wearing only his underwear and a smile ----
http://www.boli.state.or.us/BOLI/092109_BOLIRelease_FTWI_FinalOrder.pdf

This decision contains astonishing evidence. It includes the full text of a long memo Ruppert wrote to Gerken, which he signed: Love, Mike.

When the FTW office was vandalized and raw eggs thrown at Ruppert's house, he first told the police it was Gerken. Later he claimed it was the CIA in his FTW blog and omitted telling about the raw eggs ----
http://www.fromthewilderness.com/free/ww3/081606_burning_bridge.shtml

A press article ----
www.dailytidings.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090925/NEWS02/909259996/-1/NEWSMAP

[Suckatash]

And your point is, LindaLou? Could it be that the back story of Ms. Gerken was to entrap Mr. Ruppert, a man who used to publish some very dangerous ideas about the U.S. Government? Why is your posting of these facts relevant to this movie? What's in your closet? What are you hiding? Did someone bother making a movie about you? Didn't think so.

[Maja Lindström]

Chris Smith! How can we get to see your film Collapse in Sweden??? We have been waiting soo long for a proffessional filmmaker to help Mike Ruppert to get his message across. Thank you!

I suggest your producer to get in contact with the Swedish documentary film festival "Tempo"; [email protected]
http://www.tempofestival.se/english/

[Linda M]

Hey, I'll make a conspiracy movie, then sexually harass younger women.

At that point it becomes entrapment instead of harassment.

Where do I sign?