Renowned documentary filmmaker Alex Gibney’s latest project, which delves into the life of the wealthiest oligarch globally, has generated significant buzz at this year’s Venice Film Festival. The 72-year-old Oscar winner, known for his critical examinations of the U.S. military, the Catholic Church, Vladimir Putin, and Scientology, has been researching the tech mogul’s rise and engaging with his associates since late 2022, prior to his alignment with MAGA and the Trump resurgence.
This nearly four-hour film provides an in-depth exploration of how one individual has amassed such vast wealth and political clout. The film’s impact lies not so much in revealing new facts but in the comprehensive narrative it constructs. Here are six key insights from the documentary:
The film posits that Musk excels at persuading the government to provide support. Despite being hailed as “America’s biggest capitalist” at MAGA events, Gibney highlights Musk’s willingness to seek financial assistance from the state. For instance, Musk cultivated a relationship with President Obama to secure government contracts that allowed SpaceX to launch satellites for NASA and the military. The documentary focuses on a Tesla event from June 2013, where Musk introduced a battery-swapping technology that promised to replace a drained Model S battery in just 90 seconds. However, this technology was never implemented, leading Gibney to suggest that Musk’s ambitious claims were primarily a strategy to obtain more Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) credits from California, which he could then sell to more polluting manufacturers.
Gibney’s film also reflects on a time when Musk displayed admirable qualities. While it emphasizes that Musk lacks charm and charisma, it acknowledges his unconventional approach to utilizing the proceeds from his early software ventures—Zip2, X.com, and PayPal—by focusing on engineering rather than seeking venture capital. This was somewhat of an act, as noted by his ex-wife Justine, who recalls Musk’s self-conscious attempts to project an engineer’s image. Yet, footage of Musk during SpaceX launches reveals genuine enthusiasm and emotional commitment.
The documentary addresses Musk’s prolificacy, suggesting that his drive to have many children stems from a fear of societal collapse. With 14 known children—potentially more—Musk’s motivations range from romantic relationships to transactional arrangements with employees for sperm donations. He expressed to an ex-partner, influencer Ashley St Clair, that his desire for “a legion of children” was influenced by concerns of potential civil unrest. Gibney draws connections between these fears and Musk’s formative years in South Africa, where his father, Errol Musk, recalls with little remorse having shot intruders in their home. Gibney suggests that Musk’s traumatic childhood experiences are now impacting broader society, while also hinting at a religious undertone to his apocalyptic views, particularly through his close associate Jared Birchall, a devout Mormon tasked with managing Musk’s familial arrangements.
The film further explores Musk’s complex relationship with empathy. He has publicly criticized what he terms “suicidal empathy,” arguing that it prioritizes the feelings of criminals over their victims, which he believes contributes to the decline of Western civilization. However, the documentary raises questions about Musk’s own capacity for empathy. Instances are highlighted where he has reportedly told his wife that he would fire her if she were an employee, while also sending mixed messages to his estranged transgender daughter, Jenna, by cutting off her health insurance shortly after expressing love for her.
Additionally, the film reveals Musk’s unsettling foresight regarding Donald Trump’s potential re-election. St Clair recounts that Musk exhibited an unusual certainty about the election results, claiming he would “unleash the anomaly in the matrix” and mentioning the existence of “10,000 lasers in space.” Gibney leaves this statement open to interpretation.
Lastly, Geoffrey Hinton, a Nobel Prize-winning computer scientist referred to as the “godfather of AI,” shares his concerns about Musk’s influence on future elections. Once on friendly terms with Musk, Hinton became wary after declining an invitation to join the board of xAI. In the documentary, he expresses distrust in Musk’s ability to responsibly assess the implications of AI, stating that it seems evident Trump intends to corrupt midterm elections. Hinton suggests that if one were to manipulate those elections using AI, obtaining detailed information on U.S. citizens would be essential, and he connects this to Musk’s activities with Doge.
