Petropolis

This timely oil industry documentary from Greenpeace is only 43 minutes long, but stunning, fugue-like aerial photography justifies its cinema release. The footage was shot from a helicopter over the remote Canadian tar sands, where a massive operation is underway to extract oil from beneath forest and wetlands. The visuals lull us dreamily, gliding over mile after mile of glossy green treetops before catching a glimpse of mine-scarred landscape, which has its own kind of apocalyptic beauty. Giant smokestacks and monster trucks give the impression – like the underground M-machine in Metropolis – of an ungodly engine. The overall effect is something like Koyaanisqatsi, the disturbed sense of the world out of kilter. Blessedly free of a celebrity voiceover, there's just a blippy minimalist soundtrack for company until a short narration at the end by director Peter Mettler, who was the cinematographer on Manufactured Landscapes.