The Island President Review

Island President, The
Mohamed Nasheed is president of the Maldives, the lowest-lying country in the world. With his country threatened by rising sea levels and the impact of climate change, he moves into action.

by Patrick Peters |
Published on
Release Date:

30 Mar 2012

Running Time:

101 minutes

Certificate:

PG

Original Title:

Island President, The

Events have overtaken this profile of Maldives president Mohamed Nasheed. But, even though he has been ousted from power, this remains a compelling account of his efforts to raise awareness of the threat posed by climate change to his nation. Imprisoned for opposing longtime dictator Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, Nasheed lacks neither courage nor conviction. He also has a gift for publicity, and stunts such as the underwater cabinet meeting succeed in amusing as well as alerting. Yet, despite Nasheed’s ingenuity, documentarist Jon Shenk stresses the indifference of the emerging economic superpowers to the plight of the state and concludes that few lessons will be learned from the Maldives becoming a paradise lost.

A fascinating insight into the disparity between rich and poor, and powerful nations and their less muscle-flexing neighbours. And, unless you're a fish, it's also pretty darn scary.
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