Nuclear Now is a documentary that does something that just isn’t done: it’s a pro-nuclear energy doc made by a confirmed lefty who never saw a conspiracy about the right he disagreed with (*this statement may be hyperbole). I was hesitant to rent it even though I was intrigued by what was rattling around in Stone’s brain.
The doc gives a rundown of the history of nuclear energy… starting with, y’know, the big bang. It quickly expands from there (ba-DUM!) to cover Marie Curie, the first sustained reaction under that Chicago stadium from Oppenheimer, its use in WW2, and the attempt to put that genie into a more socially positive bottle. Then the demonization, climate change, other renewable energy sources, etc.
Stone as a film maker has never shied away from hyperbole and conspiracy (looking at you JFK) so his shift towards nuclear power as a solution to climate change left me squinting like Fry from Futurama (not sure if earnest or gullible). Like with most politically charged things, we mere mortals can’t really fully trust what the loudest voices on either side of an argument are saying.
Which made me skeptical about this doc’s honesty and three dimensionality. What helps save it is that nobody in Hollywood (or on the left in general) is “supposed” to stand for nuclear energy. That’s one evil genie they’ve been fighting for so many decades I was shocked to learn environmental organizations and politicians used to stan for nuclear back in the 50s and 60s. Much credit to Oliver Stone sticking his thumb in the eye of conventional wisdom.
The actual doc though is a bit of a mixed bag. Oliver Stone narrates it like he’d rather be on a beach in Florida… he sounds so exhausted he should kidnap Michael Moore and syphon off some adrenochrome to give him more pep (* this statement is grand conspiracy… or at least that’s what the reptilians tell me).
The doc intercuts footage with random film clips to make its point… sometimes inaccurately. For example, when talking about climate change, it shows a clip from The Day After Tomorrow (scientifically dubious but checks out otherwise) and Deep Impact (climate change did not cause a comet strike). There’s also a strained analogy that uses the railway bridge scene from Stand By Me (because the train is climate change and diving off the the side of the bridge is nuclear energy).
The doc also slumps badly at around the hour mark and goes on a lengthy explanation of how different countries are handling their power generation needs. It’s an informative rundown but gets a little exhausting.
But the doc pulls up at the end with some interesting (*this statement not verified) explorations of micro reactors and the crazy rich Americans trying to build them. I’ve heard about these before so it was nice to catch up on the current state of the art.
The doc does a little hand-waving about Fukushima, Three Mile Island, and Chernobyl and calls out the excellent HBO show from a few years ago. Great show but I know it was occasionally a little loose with its science so I’m not surprised Stone took aim at it. But, like with everything, who do I believe? Oliver Stone or a bunch of Hollywood producers with axes to grind?
I recommend this doc as an interesting history of nuclear power. You may or may not knee-jerk react to the premise and that might sway you to not watch it. But there’s a decent amount to like, a decent amount to be suspicious of, and some clunky presentation. As with anything, be dubious… and I should add “do your research” but that’s a stock phrase disingenuous flat earthers love to use. Sigh. The biggest problem is scientific illiteracy and motivated reasoning. We’re all doomed.
Score: 82