Division Street

In many towns, Division Street denotes the demarcation between the haves and the have-nots, but writer-director Eric Bendick's documentary offers a different take on the phrase: namely, that a number of divisions—both in American society and the natural environment—arise from the nature of roads themselves. Explorations of how transcontinental highways have fragmented ecosystems and the ways in which car culture has degraded the quality of life are combined with footage shot in far-flung locations, from the Everglades to Glacier National Park, including a trek Bendick and friends took to the area of the United States most remote from a roadway: Yellowstone's historic Thorofare route over the Continental Divide, which is 22 miles from the nearest pavement. Bendick interviews ecologists, engineers, city planners, and others who discuss urban sprawl, biodiversity, and the emerging green transportation movement. While the film is occasionally scattershot (still lifes of old license plates and stuffed trophy animal heads coupled with CGI images of automobiles scooting rapidly along freeways don't add much), the message is both heartfelt and thought-provoking. Recommended. Aud: C, P. (F. Gardner)