Greedy Lying Bastards

No, Craig Scott Rosebraugh's ardent documentary is not about bankers and the financial crisis. The subject here is climate change, specifically the battle against the lobbyists and sceptics (often financed by fossil fuel companies) who deny that human activity is affecting climate change. There's enough shattering footage of recent natural disasters (fires, twisters, floods) and informed comment from scientists to remind us - if we need reminding - that something is up with the world's climate. Rosebraugh picks up on the "denialists" tactic of making assertions dressed up as facts, something they have been doing for decades. As one scientist says, sceptics have no more credibility than "carnival barkers": the bluff Lord Monckton comments, "why don't you enjoy the sun while it lasts". There's no doubting Rosebraugh's passion to expose the situation, even if there's something depressingly familiar about lobby groups acting as fronts for big business and getting away with murder (the comparison with the tobacco industry's denial of the harmful effects of cigarettes is dismally apt). But if ever a documentary needed Michael Moore's ability to debunk the rich and powerful in his inimitable sardonic style, it's here. A brief clip of Jeremy Paxman lacerating prime sceptic Myron Ebell on Newsnight is just not enough.