A Crude Awakening

A Crude Awakening

Directed by Ray McCormack, Basil Gelpke

Produced by Lava Production

200685 min7.4 / 10

A sobering documentary investigation into petroleum depletion and its systemic threat to modern civilization, driven by data and existential concern rather than emotional appeal.

Basil Gelpke and Ray McCormack's nonfiction treatise Crude Awakening joins Maxed Out, An Inconvenient Truth, and other recent documentaries devoted to unearthing and exploring forces that are untying the connective threads of contemporary society. The subject at hand is crude oil - specifically, the depletion of petroleum from the Earth, in an era when consumption threatens to exceed supply.

Questions people ask

  • Does A Crude Awakening end with hope? Barely. Less hopeful than 83% of films.

  • Is A Crude Awakening sad? Yes. More sad than 82% of films.

  • Is A Crude Awakening scary? Barely. Less frightening than 76% of films.

  • Is A Crude Awakening violent? Barely. Less violent than 76% of films.

  • Is A Crude Awakening easy watching? Not especially. Less comforting than 74% of films.

These describe how the film comes across, measured across the whole film and compared with other well-known films. They are not a content list — nothing here was counted or checked scene by scene, so for age-suitability or specific content use a classification board or a dedicated content-warning service.

84/ 100

Cinnamon Score

How much this film gives you that nothing else will, and whether it delivers.

There is almost nothing else like this.

Rarity81

How unlike any other film this one feels

Surprise86

How much more it delivers than it promises

Love85

How much audiences actually like it

The highest scores in the catalogue →

Ensemble

Like A Crude Awakening

Nearest across the full emotional profile.

Same Mood as A Crude Awakening

Nearest on what's most distinctive about this one.

Like A Crude Awakening, But Darker

Similar, pushed toward heavier and more intense.

Like A Crude Awakening, But Lighter

Similar, pushed toward warmer and easier.

Like A Crude Awakening, But Less Popular

Same territory, far fewer people have seen it.

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