By Sylvie Rokab
Visually stunning and deeply provocative, Sylvie Rokab’s documentary Love Thy Nature deftly challenges the age-old notion that we, as a species, enjoy full dominion over the earth and its creatures, to use (and abuse) for our comfort and pleasure. Through a rich kaleidoscope touching on science, technology, medicine, spirituality, and sustainability, the film explores our relationship with animals, ecosystems, and each other.
Employing testimony from a wide swath of experts, Rokab flips over every stone and gently focuses the lens inward, encouraging a self-view that we are nature, not her master. Seducing viewers with exceptional production quality, riveting cinematography, and narration by Liam Neeson as the character Sapiens (mankind), Rokab’s message is one of hope rather than blame. We can learn from the natural world and help the planet right itself, even amid the destruction fueled by global warming, factory farming, and other ills of the industrial age.
—MONA DE CRINIS
Surrounding Earth Day 2015, the film will screen April 17–23 at SF’s Historic Vogue Theatre, with additional screenings at New Parkway Theater (April 14) and Rafael Film Center (April 19). Director Sylvie Rokab will be in attendance for most screenings.