Directed by Chris Smith (American Movie), Collapse focuses intently on conspiracy theorist Michael Ruppert: It's a talking head documentary in which Ruppert's the only talking head. As he monologues about a future in which the world's population will plummet and the survivors will face a "new human paradigm," Ruppert dots the wasteland with just enough no-shit statements to give his arguments an unexpected weight. ("Local food production is perhaps the most fundamental key to human survival in the collapse of industrialized civilization." Or: "You will fail as a rugged individual; you will survive as a member of a tribe or a family.") In letting Ruppert speak--and in making no judgments--Smith's film serves as a soapbox for Ruppert, sure. But more importantly, it's a fascinating, melancholy portrait of a man who might be batshit insane. Or he might be totally right. Or maybe he's a bit of both. by Erik Henriksen