How to Blow Up a Pipeline 2022

Movie · 104 min · English · September 10, 2022

Action drama Independent Political action

Directed by Daniel GoldhaberWritten by Ariela Barer, Jordan Sjol, Daniel Goldhaber

Starring Ariela Barer, Kristine Froseth, Lukas Gage, Forrest Goodluck, Sasha Lane

How to Blow Up a Pipeline is a 2022 American action-thriller film directed by Daniel Goldhaber, who co-wrote the screenplay with Ariela Barer and Jordan Sjol. The story draws from ideas found in Andreas Malm's 2021 book of the same name, published by Verso Books. Malm’s nonfiction text looks at social justice movements and supports property destruction as a legitimate method for environmental justice. The movie features Barer, Kristine Froseth, Lukas Gage, Forrest Goodluck, Sasha Lane, Jayme Lawson, Marcus Scribner, Jake Weary, and Irene Bedard in leading roles.

The film is set mainly in West Texas and centers on a fictional group of eight young people who choose to destroy an oil pipeline at two main sites. It investigates the moral justification for extreme actions against climate change, questions about terrorism, and the use of sabotage and property damage as forms of activism. The production lasted 19 months from start to finish, with principal filming occurring in New Mexico. It made its debut on September 10, 2022 at the 2022 Toronto International Film Festival and was shown in the United States on April 7, 2023.

Critics largely responded positively, praising its eco-thriller concept, moral and psychological depth, and the nuanced portrayal of its antiheroes. Some reviewers, however, voiced concerns over what they perceived as an endorsement of terrorism and violence within the story.