Quick review: "Oil Storm"

Watched "Oil Storm" on FX last night. This was one of their original creations, from the same network that came up with "The Shield", "Rescue Me", and "Nip/Tuck". It's also owned by Rupert Murdoch, the same guy who owns and runs the conservative-leaning Bush-kissing Fox News. There's a reason why I mention that, and you'll find out in a bit...

Here's the synopsis: A series of events - some natural, some accidental, some caused by terrorists - cause America's oil pipeline to be severed. Prices go through the roof, and then through the stratosphere. America is crippled by the economic repercussions of being without oil, and everything that the politicians do seem to only make the matter worse.

The movie is done in documentary style, which means there's a lot of phony news footage and "home videos" to carry the story along. Some of the footage seems real, others came out too fake. Some of the "home video" footage manages to capture the human drama on events as they happen, while others come out too pressed.

My only gripes are two-fold.

First, there's a "happy" ending to this movie that is just not realistic. I won't say what it is, but once you see it, you'll know it isn't realistic. A last-minute miracle by the Bush Junior White House to "save the day" and everything starts to right itself because of it. First the Bush Junior people can do nothing right, and then suddenly they find that last-minute save and everything is okay. God bless America and God bless Bush Junior. Yeah, right. That's why I mentioned that FX is owned by the same person who owns Fox News.

My second gripe is that not ALL of the key issues were touched on with this movie. The key message given is "hey, we can't trust Saudi Arabia for our oil!" And that's true. We can't bet the bank on those guys. But it doesn't go into the fact that we haven't had any new refineries built in two decades. It doesn't deal with the various EPA regulations that force refineries to come up with different blends for different vehicles. It doesn't mention that all of that oil we have in the Alaskan Oil Pipeline goes to tankers that go to the Asian countries instead of staying in this country. It doesn't mention ANWAR. It basically focuses on our dependence on Saudi Arabia and suggests a few other alternatives, but not all of the alternatives.

Speaking of which, with all of the chaos and resistance and outright riots that break out, why is it that nobody talk about impeaching Bush Junior in this hypothetical account? Well we know the answer to that question... because this is a Rupert Murdoch production. The fates can work against the Bush Junior White House, but it cannot do any wrong according to Murdoch's operation.

This is a really good movie, though, and one that I strongly recommend that people watch, because this stuff CAN happen to us. Just be mindful of the subtle pro-Bush hints near the end of it.