Nov. 9 (Bloomberg) -- Cassandras must be three things: prophetic, pessimistic and ignored. Michael Ruppert, a Los Angeles policeman turned independent reporter, fits at least two of those categories.

Ruppert, the subject of director Chris Smith’s documentary “Collapse,” warns that industrial civilization is headed for cataclysm as a burgeoning population relies on a dwindling supply of oil and our leaders stand idly by or, worse, actively hasten the disaster.

“The only thing that amazes me is the speed with which things are falling apart,” he says over the course of what amounts to an 80-minute interview, conducted in the basement of an abandoned Los Angeles meat-packing plant.

The camera prowls around Ruppert, who smokes cigarette after cigarette and calmly indicts our thirst for oil, alleges Central Intelligence Agency plots to sell drugs and claims U.S. foreign policy is geared toward securing energy reserves.

Smith emulates the placid storytelling style of Errol Morris (“The Fog of War”). The chilly result differs in texture and pace from Smith’s best-known effort, the warm, chaotic and hilarious “American Movie.” Even the score, by Didier Laplae and Joe Wong, has the minimalist feel of a soundtrack by Philip Glass, a Morris collaborator.

Editor Barry Poltermann punctuates the lecture with archival footage of farms and oil wells and passages from cheesy instructional films.

Smith was researching a film on C.I.A. involvement in drug smuggling when he met Ruppert and decided to do a picture about him. At times, Ruppert comes across as a mild-mannered crackpot, urging us to hoard gold, claiming credit for predicting the economic collapse, accusing Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld of taking an “intense” interest in him, and dwelling on mysterious deaths he connects to U.S. covert operations.

Dire Hyperbole

A seasoned public speaker, Ruppert is as quick with dire hyperbole (“The whole economy is a pyramid scheme”) as with evocative images (“The soil has become a junkie”). But the picture’s measured pace and Ruppert’s grave, mournful delivery produce the opposite of the attention-grasping audiovisual circus of a Michael Moore polemic.

Smith seems less interested in argument than character. He seldom challenges Ruppert’s allegations and presents no alternative points of view.

Ruppert’s grand vision contrasts with his simple life: He lives with his dog in Culver City, California. His latest book has not sold well and he is facing eviction. He loses his composure once in the picture, a moment that succinctly conveys the burden of his life’s work.

“I have emotion about this. I’m losing it,” he says. “We have felt so angry.”

“Collapse” is showing in New York and opens in Los Angeles on 11/13. Rating: ***

What the Stars Mean:

****          Excellent
***           Good
**            Average
*             Poor
(No stars)    Worthless

(Andrew Dunn is an editor at Bloomberg News. The opinions expressed are his own.)

To contact the reporter on this story: Andrew Dunn in New York at adunn8@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: November 9, 2009 00:01 EST