The Trick

About the movie

A specific incident in 2009 pertaining to climate scientist Phil Jones is dramatized. One of the most respected people in the field having been in the cutting edge of research for thirty years in wanting to provide accurate information for others to make informed decisions, he is the Director of the Climate Research Unit (CRU) at the University of East Anglia. That incident is the computer system containing his work being hacked, the hacker who proceeds to publish anonymously online most specifically emails that indicate that Jones may have falsified data to show global warming more than reality, the word "tricked" which is especially damning. It seems as if it was a coordinated effort in well known climate change denier Stephen Mosher capturing that information to maintain it in case the original postings are ultimately removed. While some irrevocable damage is already done, especially in even the scandal justification for world leaders to do nothing on the issue of climate change at the upcoming COP15 (Conference of the Parties) in Copenhagen, and Jones' reputation and his work being put into question in its entirety, two streams in dealing with the issue are presented. The first is the Scotland Yard investigation into the hack itself, the lead, DSI Julian Gregory, treating it with the seriousness as if someone was murdered. The second is the work of a public relations firm behind the scenes who is coaching Jones in how best to present himself in needing to testify, first and foremost in front of a select committee of Parliament which is assessing if there was indeed any wrongdoing on Jones' part. As such, the PR team has to take into consideration whether or not Jones is indeed guilty of what has been purported in the email leak. Beyond the damage to his reputation, Jones and his wife Ruth Jones have more pressing issues with which to deal on the matter in having received death threats including to anyone in their family, one along the lines of (paraphrasing), "if you don't have the guts to do it yourself, we can do it for you."—Huggo