The Unforeseen ***

Directed by Laura Dunn. With Gary Bradley, William Grieder, Robert Redford, Willie Nelson, Ann Richards, Judah Folkman and Wendell Berry. Distributed by the Cinema Guild. 1 hour, 33 mins.

No MPAA rating

. Playing at: Ritz at the Bourse.

The Unforeseen

has the title of a science fiction thriller, not a thoughtful documentary on the environment, but there's truth in that packaging. As directed by Laura Dunn, this unusual film unfolds like a mournful whodunit, with the Earth itself being the victim of the crime.

Taking its title from the poem "Santa Clara Valley," read in voice-over by the poet Wendell Berry in his best angry, Old Testament prophet-style,

The Unforeseen

skirts the danger of being simply a tree-hugger movie, and of reflexively coming out for clean air and water the way conservatives used to come out for motherhood, the flag and apple pie.

Instead this film honors the intricacies of a complex subject. It depicts the battle between the competing interests of developers and environmentalists as it played out over a 30-year period in the area around Austin, Texas, and turns it into a convincing microcosm for land-use issues everywhere.

Although a more conventional documentary might start by trumpeting the problem,

The Unforeseen

favors a more indirect, even oblique approach.

Though

The Unforeseen

has a few too many clips of Robert Redford, its environmentalist executive producer, its strength is its realization that these unforeseen developments are making few people happy. No one who sees this intriguing documentary will want to argue with reporter William Greider when he forcefully insists, "We need a more mature regard for the future." We do indeed.

- Kenneth Turan
Los Angeles Times