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Spaceship Earth

Play trailer 2:12 Poster for Spaceship Earth 2020 1h 54m Documentary Play Trailer Watchlist
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87% Tomatometer 111 Reviews 59% Popcornmeter 50+ Ratings
In 1991 eight visionaries embark on a two-year experiment to quarantine themselves inside Biosphere 2 -- a self-engineered replica of Earth's ecosystem.
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Spaceship Earth

Spaceship Earth

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Critics Consensus

Spaceship Earth achieves liftoff as an engaging behind-the-scenes record of an audacious experiment -- and settles into orbit as poignant proof of the power of a shared dream.

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Critics Reviews

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Tara Brady Irish Times Aug 14, 2020
3/5
The excitement around anything that pertained to space travel in 1991 is genuinely moving. But one is left with dark, messy hints rather than a satisfactory third act. Go to Full Review
Danny Leigh Financial Times Jul 15, 2020
4/5
Wolf isn't the most elegant storyteller, but his material is so fascinating, you forgive the sprawl... Go to Full Review
Peter Bradshaw Guardian Jul 8, 2020
4/5
My ignorance was so complete, in fact, that for the first few minutes of this film I kept suspecting some kind of docu-spoof. But it's all real... Go to Full Review
Cole Smithey ColeSmithey.com Feb 11, 2022
A
If there is any scandal to report, it comes from none other than Mr. April Fool himself, Steve Bannon. Go to Full Review
Milana Vujkov Lola On Film Jul 31, 2021
4/5
Equally amusingly eco-trendy and genuinely gob-smacking saga about the ingenious two-year experiment. Go to Full Review
Jake Cunningham NME (New Musical Express) Jun 18, 2021
4/5
Spaceship Earth achieves the goal of the Synergists - to highlight the friction between finance and innovation, corporation and environmental exploitation, and our own non-cyclical relationship with our planet Go to Full Review
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Audience Reviews

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Edward D @RT79304329 Apr 2, 2023 This show is more about a cult and a psycopathix cult leader than about any biosphere... See more May 14, 2022 The sustainable possibility is an educationally compelling factor that makes this documentary intriguing, and how it reflects back on the subject surrounding the ambitious but flawed experimental project turned out thorough and reasonable from creative buildup in a resume form, with strayed interest, to the overall outlook leading into the diminishing. This documentary exposes the downfalls in an unbalanced focus over the true positives aside from skilled passionate contributive roles than displaying results for justifiable credibility, hence the reasonable portion conclusively explained, but the reflective insights and existing archival footage helped justified the reminiscing exposure in a timely matter, which therefore emphasizes how worthwhile this is in both ways with appreciation. (B) See more Kevin L @Lakeman Mar 1, 2022 This is a fairly amazing documentary all told. It does drag at times. There's the tendency to feel like these are people who are working on something just for themselves and 'their kind', then again, I get that. There's always gonna be tribal factions who are looking out for themselves. At least their efforts with Biosphere 2 were not based on ignorance, paranoia, and class insecurities, or some global conspiracy idiocy. The film clips from their time in building up to and including Biosphere 2 are generally fascinating. I'm not surprised at all, though, with the John Allen issues and the project not being continued as such. 3.4 stars See more spencer p @s_plewe Feb 20, 2022 A film that tells the story of a most ambitious experiment that aimed to move mankind forward but was torn apart by mankind's folly, illuminating the limits of science-inspired will-power, trust and teamwork. See more Apr 11, 2021 Uma história empolgante sobre um coletivo de hippies que decide criar uma simulação do planeta terra dentro de um deserto. See more Mar 8, 2021 Having visited Biosphere 2, and read several books about the project, I found this film something of a retrospective. I remember the media excitement of at the start of the project, and the later media criticism (typical of the shit attacks, conspiracy theories, and misinformation you find on social media these days). It was an amazing thing, an incredible accomplishment, marvelous construction and engineering, and didn't deserve the kicking it got. The movie was frankly a bit boring. I did other work while the thing played in the background. I didn't watch the ending, since I already knew how it came out. See more Read all reviews
Spaceship Earth

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Movie Info

Synopsis In 1991 eight visionaries embark on a two-year experiment to quarantine themselves inside Biosphere 2 -- a self-engineered replica of Earth's ecosystem.
Director
Matt Wolf
Producer
Matt Wolf, Stacey Reiss
Distributor
Neon
Production Co
Radical Media, Stacey Reiss Productions, Impact Partners
Genre
Documentary
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
May 8, 2020, Limited
Release Date (Streaming)
May 8, 2020
Runtime
1h 54m
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