Watching this film in class was, for me, a tale of intertwined contrasts. There were numerous themes that were dancing back and forth across the screen as the film progresses, and how they compared to one another, and which was preferable, was up to the viewer to see whether or not humanity was making the right decisions in our relationship with the Earth.

Some of these contrasts included: light vs. dark, wet vs. dry, windy vs. still, colorful vs. dull, human creation vs. nature, finished products vs. the dirty processes that created them, civilian vs. military, booming vs. desolation, creation vs. destruction, amusement vs. necessity, and most importantly, slow vs. fast.

I believe everyone who watched the film in class left with a feeling of anxiety or nausea after the movie became incredibly quick towards the conclusion, and this was no doubt the desired goal for the makers of the film. The problem with nature and humans for the filmmakers is spiraling out of control; it is exponential, growing, and manifesting itself throughout our society and more importantly our earth. It was hard to watch as the screen danced from image to image, sometimes sprinted from one to another, as my eyes hurt and my head begged me to look away from the ever changing projector screen.

There is a common notion throughout the film that man is capable of destroying itself. Culminating in the mushroom cloud from the nuclear bomb, but also the slow motion films of fighter jets, there is the ever present underlying tone that the base that our society is founded upon is in essence always at risk of collapsing away if we are too lenient with our respect for the natural world.

I do not know if Koyaanitsqatsi is, for me, a motivational call to arms in order to protect the environment and our relationship with the natural world. What gets through to me in terms of documentaries and pieces that are made to influence their audience towards action is at least some form of hope, a plan of action, a way forward out of an issue. There must be a tangible goal that can be met after watching an influential piece for me personally to feel inspired to take action myself. For me, because Koyaanitsqatsi was so depressing, so fast paced, covering practically all aspects of human life, it made the problem seem too large to conquer, or to even address, which unfortunately is coming closer and closer to truth. It made me too depressed (and sick) to be able to derive what action the filmmakers wanted to see out of their audience; while it was obvious they wanted to see more respect for the environment and a transition away from current practices, the movie was so large in scope that after that, it was hard for me to find the next step.