Morgen Wood - "How to Blow Up A Pipeline"

     I recently watched the movie "How to Blow Up A Pipeline" (2022). Centered around the concept of radical environmental activism, this movie's plot followed an ensemble of characters who attempt to, as the title betrays, blow up an oil pipeline located in Texas. Each of the cast has their own distinct reason for wanting to be rid of the pipeline. Xochitl is the first character introduced, and is the one who proposes the initial plan. With her mother dead from an accelerated heatwave, Xochitl abandons her previous work with a peaceful grassroots organization to recruit the other characters into a radical form of protest. The crew attempts to rig several homemade bombs to destroy sections of pipe without spilling the oil into neighboring communities. Each character has been directly affected by the construction of the pipeline, and the movie is incredibly effective on illustrating the far-reaching effects of the oil industry. It touches on the well-meaning, but ineffective peaceful protesting route that soon leads the characters to take more drastic measures. I think this film was incredibly effective in its messaging, and was well executed. Unlike other films based on environmental activism and political messaging, such as 2021's "Don't Look Up," this film did not rely on several big-name actors nor an unrealistic plot. It instead focused on the relatable lives of each character, and created a realistic atmosphere that we, as the audience, can compare to our current lives. The sixth mass extinction event is ongoing, and yet corporations continue to expunge any resources the earth has left to offer, in order to gain a profit. This movie also connects back to the ideals of radical activism. Each character is willing to go to federal prison for what they have done, because in their minds this destruction is the only way to truly convince the world that the oil industry is destroying the environment. 

    

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