Rebuilding Paradise

2020

Action / Documentary

2
Rotten Tomatoes Critics - Rotten 80% · 69 reviews
Rotten Tomatoes Audience - Upright 80%
IMDb Rating 6.9/10 10 748 748

california based on true story wildfire

Plot summary

​On November 8, 2018, a spark flew in the Sierra Nevada foothills, igniting the most destructive wildfire in California history and decimating the town of Paradise. Unfolding during the year after the fire, this is the story of the Paradise community as they begin to rebuild their lives.

Director

Ron Howard Photo
Ron Howard

Top cast

Gavin Newsom Photo
Gavin Newsom as Self - Governor-elect
Jerry Brown Photo
Jerry Brown as Self - Governor
Erin Brockovich-Ellis Photo
Erin Brockovich-Ellis as Self
Kory Honea Photo
Kory Honea as Self - Butte County Sheriff
720p.WEB 1080p.WEB
811.46 MB
1280*714
English 2.0
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 28 min
Seeds ...
1.63 GB
1920*1072
English 5.1
NR
Subtitles us  
23.976 fps
1 hr 28 min
Seeds 5

Movie Reviews

Reviewed by planktonrules 7 / 10

Well made...and depressing to watch.

When I say that a film is depressing, I am NOT necessarily saying you shouldn't watch it or that it's a bad film. This Ron Howard documentary is well made and interesting but it also cannot help but leave you feeling down when it has ended. I also mention it because I strongly encourage people dealing with depression NOT to watch it, as it might leave you more down as a result of watching.The story is about a town oddly named 'Paradise' in Central California, just north of Chico and about 90 minutes north of Sacramento. Due to neglect by Pacific Gas & Electric, an electrical fire burned nearly all of the town to the ground. The film is about the first year after the fire and how the folks are coping with the disaster and upheaval.Despite being made by a Hollywood insider, Howard, it has the look of a movie shot with the simplest of cameras...better than iPhones but sort of a cheap videocamera look. This is not a complaint...more an observation. It consists of photos, stock video and lots of interviews with the locals. Best of all, it has no narration...something it share with many better documentaries. Overall, it's very well made and interesting...especially for folks like me who live relatively close to Paradise and have seen PG&E's reaction to lawsuits concerning the fire.
Reviewed by imseeg 5 / 10

Misplaced title, because there is nothing much left to rebuild in Paradise, besides heavily polluted wasteground...

I expected more from this documentary made by the famous Hollywood director Ron Howard. What this documentary is mostly showing one could already have seen in any tv reportage about the fires.The title of this movie "Rebuilding Paradise" is quite misplaced, because most people cant or dare not return to the burned down town Paradise and have to live in with family or in a trailer. A few people, whose homes have been saved do still live there though and they have to shower in water that is so heavily polluted it permeates through the human skin while showering and can harm an unborn infant.What's most impressive are the people who are filming their escape out of a sea of fire, with their carwheels literally on fire as they are fleeing their hometown Paradise. But that is only a very small part of the movie. It's mostly about grieving, scared or angry homeowners who have to deal with finding a new home again etc.What's most scandalous is the fact that because of reckless neglect in maintenance of above ground powerlines by the electric company, this fire got started in the first place. But only a few minutes of this documentary is dedicated to that cause. Missed opportunity!All in all, this documentary is not very wel made, but it certainly is not a bad document of these fires that destroyed part of California. It could have been better though if this documentary had paid much more attention to the causes of these fires and what can be done to prevent it in the future. Fire causes and ways of prevention do get mentioned, but only shortly and in passing, which is a bit of a shame...
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