The Unforeseen (2007)

A documentary about the development around Barton Springs in Austin, Texas, and the environment's unexpected response to human interference.

Director:

Laura Dunn

Writer:

Wendell Berry (poem)

Stars:

Curtis Peterson, Gary Bradley, Willie Nelson

1 win & 1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Curtis Peterson	...	Self
Gary Bradley	...	Self
Willie Nelson	...	Self
Ann Richards	...	Self
Roy Butler	...	Self
William Greider	...	Self
Ronald Reagan	...	Self (archive footage)
Bill Bunch	...	Self
Jim Bob Moffett	...	Self (archive footage)
Cedar Stevens	...	Self
Nico Hauwert	...	Self
Chock Woodruff	...	Self
Neil Tuttrup	...	Self
Frank Cooksey	...	Self (archive footage)
Dick Brown	...	Self

Storyline

A documentary about the development around Barton Springs in Austin, Texas, and the environment's unexpected response to human interference.

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Plot Keywords:

plan | underwater scene | texas | nature | austin texas | 

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Genres:

Documentary

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Did You Know?

Trivia

Robert Redford spent his summers in Austin as a child. He learned to swim in the natural springs which feature so prominently in the film (Barton Springs).

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Goofs

A latter animation showing water lines becoming blood vessels has a noticeable shift. It appears a duplicate frame has been accidentally inserted.

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Quotes

Gary Bradley: Nature in your life, very quickly becomes God. A God who gives great abundance at times... and takes everything away at times.
[on growing up on a farm]

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Crazy Credits

The closing title sequence, designed by Kyle Cooper/Prologue, begins on a massive abstract-art depiction of overdeveloped land and zooms all the way down to the surface to rest upon a single tree. Cooper requested his credit be "Closing title/Cosmic Zoom Sequence" which is what appears in the credit crawl.

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Connections

Features Frontline: The Great American Bailout (1991)

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Soundtracks

Part Intervallo
Written by Arvo Pärt
Performed by Lorenzo Ghielmi
Courtesy of Winter and Winter GMBH

User Reviews

Powerful film about land development in Austin, TX

This film premiered at Austin's SXSW Film Festival after its initial showing a few months ago at Sundance. The Unforeseen is one of the most cinematically beautiful documentaries to appear in a long time. There are stunning sequences of Barton Springs. One could certainly feel the influence of producers Robert Redford (particularly A River Runs Through It) and Terrence Malick. The nature shots were spectacular. The story that is told is particularly powerful to those who know and love Austin, but the broader conflicts between land development and environmental protection are universal and can be well-understood, although perhaps in a less personal way, by those who have never visited Austin.

While the film is clearly takes a pro-environmental stand, it is not a one-sided polemical. It presents a sympathetic and fair portrait of land developer Gary Bradley. It lets him tell his story without making him out to be a cruel unfeeling villain. It presents the history in a nuanced light that is often missing from documentary film-making. The film includes many conflicting voices and let's the audience make its own decisions. This type of film reflects the best standards of journalistic rather ideological Michael Moore-style manipulative film-making. It presents a complicated conflict of values in a way that both takes a stand without mocking those they disagree with. While some of the narrative seems a little self-righteous at times, and the title (taken from a poem used in the film) seems a little confusing and unclear, overall, the film is an excellent lesson in history and politics. I hope that it gets wide distribution, because it is a debate that the American public needs to engage over what trade offs Americans are willing to make between the environment and development. How much of our natural beauty are we willing to give up to accommodate modernity?

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

January 2007 (USA)

Also Known As:

Το απρόβλεπτο

Filming Locations:

Austin, Texas, USA

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$2,496, 2 March 2008

Gross USA:

$90,287

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$90,287

Company Credits

Production Co:

Despair, Two Birds Film, The Sundance Institute

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color