I found this small movie on Netflix streaming.
It is a simple fictional story that had its roots in a real story a few years earlier. The premise is that an Inuit man, Theo, understands that the world is changing for the worse, because of man's pursuit of unhealthy consumerism above all, and he wants to travel 'south' to talk to the 'elders' about doing something before it is too late.
Theo Ikummaq, real Inuit who actually works in conservation, is Theo. He shows up in New York without much preparation for what he will encounter there, however he is well-educated and speaks English.
In a chance encounter homeless girl Dakota Johnson as Chloe rescues him and introduces Theo to her fellow homeless 'family.' They become sympathetic to Theo's message and cause and finally realize, the only place he might reach lots of 'elders' of various countries is at the UN. But that gets them into a bit of trouble which they escape with the help of wealthy doctor, Mira Sorvino as Monica.
She only goes by Monica but in a scene where cops show her the business card they used to track them down it said 'Monica Ord', who is a real person and one of the producers of the movie. Ms Ord is an entrepreneur and consultant who had spent nearly two decades in the life sciences industry, helping develop promising therapies for HIV/AIDS and other immunological deficiency disorders.
Another producer is the wealthy tycoon Richard Branson.
If you judge the movie strictly against better fictional movies then it doesn't fare very well. The writing, acting, sound etc are not up to better movie standards. But if you look at it for the message it contains, the excessive consumerism most of us know vs the simple lives of remote indigenous peoples, like the Inuit, then it is a worthwhile commentary on the dangerous direction we are steering our world into.
SPOILERS: In the end Theo was not able to get an audience with the UN, and in an ironic conclusion, Monica gave him a new pair of casual athletic shoes to wear around New York but two thugs accosted him, stabbed him to get his shoes, and he died.
It is a simple fictional story that had its roots in a real story a few years earlier. The premise is that an Inuit man, Theo, understands that the world is changing for the worse, because of man's pursuit of unhealthy consumerism above all, and he wants to travel 'south' to talk to the 'elders' about doing something before it is too late.
Theo Ikummaq, real Inuit who actually works in conservation, is Theo. He shows up in New York without much preparation for what he will encounter there, however he is well-educated and speaks English.
In a chance encounter homeless girl Dakota Johnson as Chloe rescues him and introduces Theo to her fellow homeless 'family.' They become sympathetic to Theo's message and cause and finally realize, the only place he might reach lots of 'elders' of various countries is at the UN. But that gets them into a bit of trouble which they escape with the help of wealthy doctor, Mira Sorvino as Monica.
She only goes by Monica but in a scene where cops show her the business card they used to track them down it said 'Monica Ord', who is a real person and one of the producers of the movie. Ms Ord is an entrepreneur and consultant who had spent nearly two decades in the life sciences industry, helping develop promising therapies for HIV/AIDS and other immunological deficiency disorders.
Another producer is the wealthy tycoon Richard Branson.
If you judge the movie strictly against better fictional movies then it doesn't fare very well. The writing, acting, sound etc are not up to better movie standards. But if you look at it for the message it contains, the excessive consumerism most of us know vs the simple lives of remote indigenous peoples, like the Inuit, then it is a worthwhile commentary on the dangerous direction we are steering our world into.
SPOILERS: In the end Theo was not able to get an audience with the UN, and in an ironic conclusion, Monica gave him a new pair of casual athletic shoes to wear around New York but two thugs accosted him, stabbed him to get his shoes, and he died.