Theme Of There Goes The Last Tree

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“I think water should be free, so it started from that idea, and then it evolved from that and what kind of world would we be in the future where all commodities air, water, sunlight is sold to us” said Wanuri Kahiu, director of Pumzi(2010) (Kahiu 2:55), in an interview about her short film. In her movie she uses the setting to emphasize the harmful effects currently placed on the environment. During the movie Asha, Pumzi’s protagonist, receives a package containing soil with a high concentration of water. She leaves the city after being denied a visa, and pursues the soils original location. When she finally reaches her destination, it’s a barren wasteland while still being able to support life. Asha plants the seed, giving it every last ounce …show more content…

This is first introduced when the Maitu Seed (Mother Seed or “Our Truth”) is shown and while Asha is dreaming about a tree growing in the desert (Pumzi 0:44). This scene however, granted the Maitu Seed an important role in the movie. This theme was introduced again when Asha got to her lab and the branch of the last living tree was on display with the title “There Goes the Last Tree” (Pumzi 4:05). This was a dead giveaway that deforestation plays a major role in the development of the story. It demonstrated the importance of trees as well. The theme was introduced for a third time when Asha analyzes the soil sample and smells the sample after finding out that the soil contains an surplus of water, and is sent into a dreamlike state, in which she dreams about a finding a tree in the desert; she then mixes the soil with water and places the seed in the soil (Pumzi 6:24). This scene foreshadows a later scene in the movie after she leaves the city. She arrives at the location where the soil came from and is absorbed into a mirage of healthy tree giving her false hope. Immediately after she discovers that the tree was just an allusion as she hugs the remains of a tree; which still gave her enough hope that she starts digging a hole for the Maitu Seed and plants it giving it every last drop of her sweat, water, and tears in hopes that the tree will …show more content…

The first time it was introduced in the film, it was slight, but still noticeable—after Asha scanned the soil, the machines results were ‘abnormally high water content…no radioactivity’ (Pumzi 4:53). However this issue became more apparent as Asha walked through a desert-like river, which is classified as a ‘Nuclear Radioactive River’ (Pumzi 14:01). This scene reflects the effects of chemical spills in the ocean. It also serves as a warning that radioactivity will be one of the leading factors that contribute even more environmental issues. This ties back to all of the other environmental problems that are shown throughout the movie, while also being the reason behind what happened during the Water

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