Into Eternity: A Film for the Future (2010) User Reviews

A uniquely cool provocation of thought

[AULhall · 8/10 · 13 August 2011]

I don't believe I am exaggerating when I claim that this is one of the coolest works of film I've ever watched. It's a thought experiment packaged within a brilliantly paced, well directed, and aptly scored documentary. The subject matter is critically important to anyone with half an eye on the distant future, and writer/director Michael Madsen does not fail to put matters into perspective.

This won't be for everyone, since it doesn't spoon-feed the viewer easy answers, nor does it cater at all to those with little imagination. But if you like thinking about topics that generally fall only under the scope of the science fiction genre, and you don't mind tackling questions that are both grand and open-ended, then this documentary will be time well spent.

A hundred thousand years of solitude

[paul2001sw-1 · 7/10 · 14 June 2011]

The documentary 'Nuclear Eternity' poses some interesting questions about a fascinating project currently underway in Finland, to bury nuclear waste deep beneath the ground so that it can decay over 100,000 years. On one hand, this can be seen as admirably far-sighted; on the other hand, our normal inability to see further than 100,000 seconds, and the very fact that Finland alone will fill this massive repository within just one century, might seem to point to the stupidity of producing nuclear waste in the first place, and to the certainty that humanity is doomed not to survive for so long a period (for sure, the species might be 4 million years old, but civilisation dates back less than 10,000 years). The film shows us lots of pictures of nuclear facilities, and gives us thoughtful interviews with serious sounding (mostly Finnish) scientists; but ultimately, all they can do is ponder the same unanswerable questions as the rest of us. This isn't a great documentary; but it is both humbling and scary.

An elegant and poetic hymn to a distant future

[eatfirst · 8/10 · 14 September 2012]

Michael (no not that one) Madsen's fascinating and thought provoking study of the problems of long-term storage of nuclear waste material could be presumed to fall into one of two documentary formats. A: The dry scientific lecture, a-la Horizon, or B: The Michael Moore-style charged polemic. Surprisingly it resembles neither of these so much as it does the stately and poetical science-fiction of Andrei Tarkovsky.

Taking as his subject, the huge and potentially world-leading Finnish project to bury their waste in permanent underground storage caverns, the focus of the story swiftly moves on from preliminaries such as the logistics of construction, to the unexpectedly rich philosophical question of how we communicate the meaning and danger of such a place over its unimaginably vast intended lifespan of a hundred-thousand years. Michael frames his entire presentation as a message to some far- flung civilisation, twenty times more removed from our own than we are from those who built the pyramids. Telling the story of how we buried "the fire we could not extinguish" as an eloquent and profoundly moving legend, to be passed down from generation to generation... of the place, as he so beautifully expresses it, that we must always remember to forget.

Magnificent and thoughtful documentary which all should see

[robert-temple-1 · 10/10 · 23 January 2011]

Director and presenter Michael Madsden (not the same person as the actor of that name) has made a documentary film which may well be unique. Everyone should see it, because it concerns the future of our species and our planet, and it is not a superficial film by any means. He has adopted a moody Alain Resnais-style approach to the subject of the storage of nuclear waste for a necessary 100,000 years. This is not a propaganda film against nuclear energy at all. No comment is made for or against nuclear energy. I cannot understand the bizarre, I might almost say mad, review by a Latvian who claimed that this film was hilarious. Normally I would never criticize a review by another person, but this is such an extreme instance that comment really is required. This film is so far from being hilarious that how anyone could think so is inconceivable to me, and I am forced to doubt the person's sanity. Perhaps the Latvian reviewer is one of those people who would laugh hysterically upon witnessing the end of the world. Madsden evokes a powerful atmosphere in this film, showing haunting shots of the underground Onkalo ('Hidden Place') site in Finland where nuclear waste will be stored. The most effective parts of the film however are the amazing interviews with the Finnish and Swedish scientists and technologists (all in English). They are most impressive and deeply thoughtful people. The things revealed in this film about this important subject are truly mind-boggling. The film has an elegiac feel about it, as if it were a message to some future species about who and what the extinct humans once were. The Finns should leave a copy of the film in their underground caverns, in case they are ever entered tens of thousands of years from now. We should also put DVDs of this film into satellites which we send into deep space, as a kind of sad testament to a failed species, in the hope that some other species might find them one day and figure out how to view them, and learn the pathetic lessons of our inability to think sufficiently deeply, which is the fatal flaw of our human kind. Meanwhile, this film should be shown in all schools all over the world with the utmost urgency, and screened on all serious television channels in every country. But of course none of this will happen. I write as someone who has tried so far unsuccessfully to introduce crucial new technology into the storage of nuclear waste. The monstrous complacency and stupidity which I have encountered forces me to face the possibility that our species may become extinct within 100 years. I say this with sad resignation.

Pondering the future with one of the best films at the Tribeca Film Festival

[dbborroughs · 9/10 · 27 April 2010]

One of the better films screening at this years Tribeca film festival is a meditation on what we should do with the nuclear waste that's left behind. More specifically it's what Finland is doing with their nuclear waste. What the country is doing is digging a miles deep tomb in which they hope to bury all of their waste so that it will hopefully remain undisturbed for the 100 or more thousand years it will need to decay and become safe.

The film, which is more an essay in the form of a letter to future generations, is a trippy affair with some of the most haunting marriages of image and music you are likely to find. The film masterfully ponders what are our options for waste such as this and how do we protect our children's children's children from its dangers. I love how filmmaker Michael Madsen draws you in as if it's a fairy tale and forces you to think. He also scores many pints for presenting the people who are responsible for the project as human beings who are far from certain, but trying the best they can. Its nice to see a bunch of experts with the willies scared out of them.

If there is any flaw in the film its perhaps that its 75 minute running time is a couple minutes too long. But that is a quibble. This is a film that should be seen, preferably on a big screen in the dark where the imagery will work its way into your brain.

Okay- how good is the film? Out of the 11 films I saw at Tribeca so far this was the first and only film where no one moved when the end credits rolled. Everyone just sat there staring at the screen. Everyone seemed to want to stay to talk to the filmmaker at the Q&A. (except for the few of us who peeled ourselves out of our chairs to make trains or other screenings)

Excellent

[Anna_Avramenko · 6 August 2011]

If you want to be informed about the problems of nuclear energy in a clear, balanced and intelligent way, you've come to the right place.

This film really opened my eyes and my conscience to what I and all my other fellow human beings are doing with our planet and the serious problems we pass down to future generations.

I felt the style of the film passed to the topic: slow shots, for example showing just how long it takes to build this underground nuclear waste storage facility. And then this has to remain untouched for thousands of years! Great illustration and comparison to these unimaginable time scales. So, also a very appropriate title: Into Eternity.

This is a very necessary film for everyone living today. I hope many people watch it. It can make our world a better place.

A good documentary but is too long

[Jimmy_JimJim · 7/10 · 19 October 2020]

This documentary raises a few good questions and issues that humanity will need to solve collectively. The materials presented are quite thin though, which is OK but is not enough for the 78-minute runtime, so the film feels stretched and slow. However, strong cinematography provided some visual delights as well as created a sense of darkness and doom throughout the film, which is quite consistent with the central themes.

Moody and haunting with music to match - gives an interesting feeling

[metro1 · 10/10 · 17 January 2011]

If you look only at the subject matter which is building a long 3 mile tunnels down 500 meters into bed rock it sounds more like a theme that you would see on a television series like mega structures filled with high-tech, how did they do it kind of thing. Here, however, the technology to do this project is hardly mentioned as digging deep holes in the ground such are used in mining has gone on a very long time. Here instead we see more of a scene about timelessness and about the unknown. Of course we have a pretty remarkable project being constructed and then filled over a 100 year period named Onkalo. As no one will be involved in both the start and the completion of the project when finished, the plan is to abandon the structure and hope that no one will attempt to enter for at least 100,000 years. The deep moodiness of the film with its haunting music and barren forest scenes with gray landscape tries to force you into a mood of the vastness of time. To put this into perspective, the pyramids were built about 4000 years ago, though we think cave dwellers lived 30,000 years ago and maybe humans have actually been around for 100,000 years. But will they even exist as long as this storage facility is supposed to? No one knows. When it is sealed in 2120 do we just forget about it or do you warn people about it? Will warning people make them want to explore? Will there still be humans like we are, or will they be much different as we are to Neanderthal man. These are some of the things discussed in the film. It is short, only one hour and 15 min. The director likes long sweeping zooming in traveling shots. This work definitely gives you a feeling that you don't get from many films, but one not easy to describe. Near the end of the film as two workers are just walking into one section of the tunnel it in itself is totally non-remarkable and could be shot in any mine or cave in the world but the mood of the scene and the music behind is effective and you get some feeling that it is actually quite difficult to create something you hope will last 100,000 years. A unique film and the mood it imparts makes it worth more than one viewing.

A futuristic fable of mega-proportions

[olivia-113 · 10/10 · 23 January 2011]

A white and eerie endless tunnel blasted out of the rock leads us in to the sinister yet strangely lyrical world of nuclear waste storage. The frozen trees of Finland lead us along icy tracks to something which must be beautiful, but no, it is the wicked giant who lives below the earth. We must never ever disturb him. Michael Madsen has produced and presents this film for the future with great love and concern for his fellow humans and the planet. Striking a match from within the dark and deep tunnel, a permanent tomb for nuclear waste, his face partially lit by the diminishing flame, Madsen speaks like a prophet/poet as he addresses the future and explains the dangers of disturbing this alchemical product entombed beneath the rock. He interviews the Finnish and Swedish scientists of the Onkalo project whose job it is to lock this stuff away and their philosophical dilemma about its whereabouts. Should we leave a marker warning DANGER KEEP OUT or should the site be unmarked and forgotten in the hope that it will truly never be disturbed. In this case never means, 100,000 years. Filmed across a large shiny desk with harsh lighting these poor men look anguished and disturbed by their responsibilities, almost to the point of nervous collapse. The footage of clear icicle-like rods containing the waste being lowered into shafts and water pools is like watching a ballet performed by gigantic molecules operated by an invisible hand. Everyone should see this film. It is a disturbing testament to our brightly lit lives which we continue to take for granted at our and the planet's peril.

The understated poetry of the vast

[funkytwig · 9/10 · 29 December 2010]

Looking sometimes more like Ridly Scotts Allan than an environmental film this gentle documentary about the vast takes you through a sometimes surreal vogue of discovery. What to do with a substance so toxic it must be hidden for 100,000 years, it must survive war and ice age. Written as a video letter to future generations the direction, conceptual artist and filmmaker Michael Madsen, takes you through a visually stunning and thought provoking journey. This may seem like a dry subject but his understated and sometimes playful approach to the subject draws you in keeping you engaged thought.

The film includes interviews with nuclear scientists and government representatives which take you into the strange world of thinking further into the future than we have ever dared to venture before. There is a candid honesty here that may alter your perception about our responsibilities.

This haunting film may well become a testimony to our inability to see the real cost of nuclear power yet it remains totally non judgemental thought.

rather dull, ponderous and pedestrian documentary

[gregking4 · 3/10 · 9 June 2012]

This rather dull, ponderous and pedestrian documentary from Danish conceptual artist Michael Madsen looks at Onkalo, a massive nuclear waste storage facility being built 500 metres underground in a remote area of Finland. It will comprise of over three miles of tunnels. As nuclear waste needs to be stored somewhere safe for the next 100,000 years, the facility needs to be secure and remain uncompromised by future generations. It is expected that it will be permanently sealed off sometime in the 22nd century. Neither sending it into space or burying it deep under the oceans practical solutions to the problem of nuclear waste. Storage facilities above ground are temporary at best, as the Earth is unstable. Wars, earthquakes, economic depressions, greenhouse effects will have an impact over the centuries. Despite the important subject matter, the ominous warnings sounded and the numerous questions raised, Madsen (who also made the short documentary To Damascus, etc) seems to lack the same sense of urgency as the recent nuclear doco Countdown To Zero. In fact, Masden seems to be addressing his film to future generations, and this gives the material a quasi-science-fiction feel. There are lots of talking head interviews with government officials, scientists, doctors, theologians and specialists in the field of nuclear waste management, but these are fairly dull. The film has been shot on high definition video, and the images are quite crisp and clear, especially when Masden takes his camera deep inside the cavernous site itself. It's a pity that the film itself is rather prosaic, occasionally repetitive, visually unexciting and unimaginative in structure. Also there is a lack of technical information on the details of the construction of this massive project, which would have provided some additional context. Into Eternity would have been better served as a tightly constructed 50 minute documentary which would have been more effective.

refreshing and singularly unique documentary style

[david-958-351608 · 10/10 · 23 January 2011]

it's after 2am in the morning here and I actually signed up just to applaud the quality of the documentary and it's significance to the thoughts it may engender in you on the legacy that we leave behind and lastly to admonish a review of 1 star.

this is a singularly unique documentary and well worth your time to view and review it in your own mind.

the music is interwoven throughout the piece and until the end credits roll you find that you were unaware of the music though you'll find yourself scanning the credits for the music section as it adds so much to the piece.

peace out. David.

Beautiful, chilling, haunting, provocative

[WillWong101 · 10/10 · 3 April 2012]

Even if you have no interest in where energy comes from or in nuclear technology, this documentary is so beautifully filmed and produced that there is enjoyment in just watching it.

The core question posed by this documentary is: how do you warn countless future generations, for 100,000 years to stay away from the radioactive waste? The documentary maker asks questions of the people involved. Their responses are often chilling.

There is also some dark humor in it - the expressions on the faces of the nuclear power executives when asked what happens after hundreds or thousands of years have passed.

An extremely important documentary for this moment in history. Everyone should watch this.

Amazing visuals and sound merged with an intense documentary

[das_leichsi · 10/10 · 24 November 2011]

okay, I'm a huge fan of documentaries, but Into Eternity is just a killer.

It's not the fact that it is well grounded and has it's facts together.

what really really hit me was the visual work combined with the music. this documentary is now my most favorite Sci-Fi film. the scenes are disturbingly furturistic with a mix of post-apocalyptic elements. you feel a constant threat looming over your head while watching this amazingly beautiful film. time unfolds as Madsen leads you into a project that wants to endure longer than the modern man. and for the first time in my life I felt really small and grabbed the scope of the world we're living in. 100.000 years is an awful long time, and it is a bold move to try to achieve something this lasting.

watch the film, relax and let it just take you away for 90 minutes. I dó not regret it. and I'm definitely going to see it again. and again. and again

Cringe

[par-108-799691 · 2/10 · 29 December 2019]

Super interesting subject and great tunnel but the movie screams "my first artfilm".

So slow

[andrew-76781 · 3/10 · 17 September 2021]

Important and interesting topic but presented terribly slowly.