New Documentary Chronicles Texans’ Environmental Woes

Imagine if you lived in a small town next to a lake where everyone made their living fishing. What if, through no fault of your own - especially since the narrative for most of our many quarters is that anything wrong that's happening to the earth is man's fault - an invasive species of weed is choking the very source of, well, everything.

This is the scenario the residents of the town of Uncertain, Texas are presented with, and what viewers of a new documentary of the same name are presented with. Serious and sad though it sounds, it's an amazingly compelling portrait.

Like many independent productions, it seems this one has been percolating for some time, having been shown in an earlier form at the Tribeca film Festival in 2015. Just this week, the New York Times published its own review, adding to a chorus of favorable recommendations for the film. It seems to be gaining the attention it deserves with multiple screenings in large cities.

In television shows like Duck Dynasty and Swamp People, we've seen depictions of residents of areas some folks call wilderness.  The setting in Uncertain is similar  but it's not played up for cheap sensationalism. Each of these folks is, in their own way, facing an existential crisis. The ecological situation is a metaphor for what's going on in their lives, as well as a very real and parallel concern.

There are a couple of instances where this film can be watched in its entirety on YouTube. I don't encourage that: I like to see filmmakers compensated for their work, especially when it's about a subject as serious as this.  However, there aren't many showings in Texas, YouTubing may be your only chance to see it for a while. Search for it if you must. For more information, check out the official website.