Cape Spin: An American Power Struggle

September. 23,2011      
Rating:
8.6
Trailer Synopsis Cast

Cape Spin! An American Power Struggle tells the surreal, fascinating, tragicomic story of the battle over America's most scandalous clean energy project. Cape Wind would be the U.S.'s first offshore windfarm...But strange alliances formed for and against: Kennedys, Kochs, and everyday folks do battle with the developer and green groups over the future of American power. With full access to both sides, a commitment to impartial storytelling and fueled by a satiric 'revolutionary' soundtrack, Cape Spin! is "a gripping and entertaining study of eco-capitalism and grassroots democracy".

Reviews

Humaira Grant
2011/09/23

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

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Kien Navarro
2011/09/24

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

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Erica Derrick
2011/09/25

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

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Curt
2011/09/26

Watching it is like watching the spectacle of a class clown at their best: you laugh at their jokes, instigate their defiance, and "ooooh" when they get in trouble.

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Mark Crispin Miller
2011/09/27

Cape Spin is an extraordinary documentary about two threats to the survival of all species, including ours. On the one hand, it's about the crucial fight to find alternatives to fossil fuels—in this case, wind power, which just might help us save the Earth from fatal warming, toxic oceans and ground water, and the other poison fruits of oil-and-gas dependency.And yet Cape Spin is also a brilliant study of another, subtler kind of pollution, which is every bit as dangerous as all the evils that it urges on us: propaganda. The war between those for and those against the windmills off Cape Cod is an excellent example of a mammoth propaganda match between two different wealthy interests —just like the Democrats v. the Republicans, and other huge, expensive and utterly undemocratic struggles for the hearts and minds of the majority.This film is a must-see, as trenchant as it is hilarious, which is really saying something.

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Tomato B
2011/09/28

This documentary provides an excellent objective and insightful exploration into the power of the campaign in America. Educational and entertaining, funny and fascinating, this film should be seen by every American interested in advocacy and affecting change in this country. Educators, grassroots organizers, students and anyone interested in politics, media and creating a persuasive campaign should see this film. The film also flows well from scene to scene, and avoids the typical slow and long phases that so often make documentary films boring. The music is a delight and the editing is fantastic. Also, the movie features beautiful photography which pushes the plot ad point along--deeply engaging and informative!

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tdf511
2011/09/29

I saw this documentary as a part of the Miami and the Beaches Environmental Film Festival, and I am so glad it was included in the festival. I previously knew nothing about this topic, and I felt a learned a lot by watching the movie. Cape Spin delivers a poignant look at a very topical issue and does it in a very humorous and entertaining way. The film presents both sides of this intense debate, and shows how the answers to environmental problems are not so easily found. The issue presented here may have local significance in Miami someday, and for this reason it is very sobering--it makes the audience consider where we would stand in a situation like this. It is hard to choose a side because both sides present rational arguments. I think a mark of a truly good documentary is a lack of bias. Most of time, I watch a documentary to be educated and not indoctrinated, and Cape Spin did a great job of that. I think it is incredibly difficult to remain neutral while filming a documentary about a issue so polarizing, and I give the filmmakers a lot of credit for the delicate balance achieved in Cape Spin. Overall, a very interesting and well-done film.

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dorobachrach
2011/09/30

This film gives a mesmerizing look at the heated political battle between the advocates of renewable green energy and the preservationists of the New England coastline. An energy company proposes to build 130 tall wind turbines in Nantucket Sound. Both sides, aided by carefully spun well-funded informational campaigns - and the media reacts. Local reporting is fast and furious and the battle turns national - to the Daily Show with great behind-the-scenes material. The information campaigns spin half-truths and don't allow for intelligent discussion. Local media, lost between the salvos of the two camps cannot seem to dissect the truth. This film is a sad but funny reflection at political discourse in America. Highly recommend.

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