Film
Trashed
Jeremy Irons takes you on a furious global tour of where our garbage goes and why we're drowning in it. Part investigation, part indictment, this is an environmental documentary that never preaches from a distance—Irons gets his hands dirty, literally and figuratively, to show you the systems that fail and the people trying to fix them. Essential viewing that's genuinely angry but never hopeless.
If you liked this
An Inconvenient Truth2006
Al Gore's climate primer still hits hard, and it shares Trashed's urgency about planetary consequences. But where Trashed focuses on waste systems, this one zooms out to the atmospheric picture, giving you the bigger context.
But It's become a cultural touchstone that some find dated or preachy. The presentation can feel a bit slick for what should be uncomfortable truths.
The True Cost2015
Same anger, different supply chain. This documentary follows a single t-shirt from cotton field to landfill, showing you exactly why fast fashion is catastrophic. Pairs beautifully with Trashed's systematic view of waste.
But It's heavy on guilt. If you're already feeling the weight of your consumption choices, this may depress rather than motivate you.
A Plastic Ocean2016
Focuses laser-tight on ocean plastic while Trashed takes the wider view, so this deepens one thread into something visceral and specific. Stunning and appalling in equal measure.
But Underwater footage, however beautiful, can feel repetitive. Some viewers find the scope too narrow after wanting the full picture.
Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Trashed
The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
The Story of Stuff2007
Both trace the complete lifecycle of consumption from source to landfill. Trashed investigates it; The Story of Stuff explains it. One is journalism, one is education—same story, different vessels.
A 20-minute animated essay that covers the exact same journey as Trashed—extraction, production, consumption, disposal—but condenses it into something you can show someone who's never heard this argument. It's the skeleton key to understanding Trashed's larger system.
But Animation and brevity might make it feel reductive after watching a 98-minute investigation. Some viewers want depth, not a summary.
More like this (6)
Inside Job2010
Different crisis, same DNA: a clear-eyed investigation into how systems fail and who profits from the collapse. If you liked Trashed's structural anger, this financial meltdown doc shares that precision.
But It's dense and requires some economic literacy. The villain isn't as visible or sympathetic as in Trashed, which can make it feel abstract.
Cowspiracy: The Sustainability Secret2014
Takes on industrial agriculture's environmental cost—another massive waste and pollution story that runs parallel to Trashed's concerns. Excellent if you want to follow the thread into food systems.
But Veganism is pushed hard as the solution, which will feel preachy or reductive to many viewers regardless of their diet.
Our Planet2019
David Attenborough narrates eight episodes showing climate impact across all ecosystems. It's Trashed's consequences made visible: beautiful animals, dying habitats, the downstream results of our waste.
But It's primarily atmospheric tourism rather than an investigation. Some find it passive—something to watch rather than something that demands you act.
Before the Flood2016
Leonardo DiCaprio travels to see climate impacts firsthand, mixing celebrity access with real science. If you want that investigative-journey structure but with different entry points than Irons offers.
But DiCaprio's star power can feel like brand-building for environmentalism. The production gloss occasionally undercuts the urgency.
Dirt! The Movie2009
A documentary about soil as a living system—the foundation beneath the waste crisis Trashed explores. Quirky and philosophical where Trashed is angry, but it connects to the same web of consequences.
But It's deliberately low-key and philosophical. If you came for righteous fury, this meditative approach may feel too slow.
Stalker1979
Both confront humanity's relationship to exploitation and consequence. Trashed shows you the literal waste we've created; Stalker interrogates the spiritual and psychological waste of wanting without limit. One is documentary outrage, one is metaphysical dread, but they're asking the same question.
A Soviet sci-fi film about entering a forbidden zone where the normal rules don't apply. It's hypnotic and strange—nothing like Trashed on the surface—but it's obsessed with the same core question: what are we willing to destroy to get what we want?
But It's glacially slow, philosophically dense, and almost entirely interior. If you wanted direct solutions or clear anger, this will feel like a detour into ambiguity.
People
Cast
Jeremy IronsHimself
Directing
- Candida BradyDirector
Writing
- Candida BradyWriter