At the European premiere in London in October 2016, DiCaprio introduced the film as follows:
Content
The film shows DiCaprio visiting various regions of the globe exploring the impact of global warming. As a narrator, DiCaprio comments these encounters as well as archive footages. DiCaprio repeatedly references a 15th-century triptych by Hieronymus Bosch, The Garden of Earthly Delights, which, he explains, hung above his crib as an infant, and which he uses as an analogy of the present course of the world toward potential ruin as depicted on its final panel. The film also documents, in part, the production of DiCaprio's 2015 film The Revenant. DiCaprio's comments and inquiries focus extensively on climate change denial, mostly among corporate lobbyists and politicians of the United States. They interview with British-born astronaut Piers Sellers, a NASA scientist who flew on three space missions, discusses his desire to publicize the perils of global warming in the short time he expected he had remaining to live, as he had stage IV pancreatic cancer as he was being filmed. He died on December 23, 2016.
The film was made available freely on the internet between October 30 and November 6, 2016, the run up to US Election Day, having aired on the National Geographic Channel in 171countries and on some countries' national television channels. The film is subtitled in 45languages, making it accessible for non-English audiences. The film had been watched more than 2million times on the day following its release. It is currently available for streaming on Disney+.
Carbon tax
The film takes a closer look into the possibility of a carbon tax benefiting the American nation. In addition, they state that, "the carbon emissions from Before the Flood were offset through a voluntary carbon tax."
Reception
Critical response
The film received mostly positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, it has a 74% approval rating, based on 31 reviews with an average score of 6.97/10. On Metacritic, it has a score of 63 out of 100, based on 10 critics, indicating "Generally favorable reviews." Before the Flood was described as "surprisingly moving" in W and as "a heartfelt, decent, educational documentary about the most important issue of our time" by The Guardian. Variety praised the fact that "given the sincerity of its message, its ability to assemble such a watchable and comprehensive account gives it an undeniable urgency," stating that "where the film succeeds the most is by focusing on the ground-level victims of climate change, whether the polar bears of the Arctic, or the inhabitants of island nations like Kiribati."
