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members of Congress."
It was Gore, of course, who was once labeled the environmental extremist. The film shows a memorable clip of former President George H.W. Bush saying during the 1992 campaign that then-vice-presidential candidate Gore would leave the nation ``up to our necks in owls, and out of work for every American."
Yet as evidence of the devastating effects of climate change has mounted, the issue has gone mainstream _ and has come around to Gore. He forcefully laid out his argument in his best-selling 1992 book, ``Earth in the Balance," and spread it to a wider audience through the slide-show presentation he estimates he's given more than 1,000 times.
In that presentation -- the new film's central element -- Gore wields troubling graphics and disturbing images in a political call-to-arms. In between, the film depicts Gore as a lonely salesman, tapping on his laptop in hotel rooms and hauling his own luggage through airport security.
``An Inconvenient Truth" has vaulted Gore back into the limelight. He made another star turn on ``Saturday Night Live" last weekend. His stock answer to the presidential question is that he has found other ways to serve and has no plans to run again. Former aides say Gore's passion about global warming is larger than political ambitions.
``This is something that really does make the guy tick," said Chris Lehane , Gore's 2000 campaign press secretary.
As for the man who won the 2000 election, President Bush has acknowledged that human activity has contributed to the rise in greenhouse gases, but has stopped short of government mandates on carbon dioxide emissions. Asked by an audience member in Chicago Monday whether he would see the Gore movie, the president responded, ``Doubt it."
The film has already provoked a backlash. The Competitive Enterprise Institute, a free-market group that gets funding from oil companies, is running television ads rebutting Gore's arguments.
Frank Maisano , an energy-industry lobbyist and spokesman, said Gore is too closely associated with the far left on environmental issues to change many people's minds about global warming.
``Climate change is a serious issue, and it's going to take a serious, collaborative approach," Maisano said. ``It shouldn't be `us versus them.' But when it gets this type of hype, with Gore, people will choose sides."
Maisano said the film is likely to be this year's ``Fahrenheit 9/11" -- a splashy polemic that confirms perceptions on both sides but ultimately does little to advance serious discussions.
But Gore's style in the film, combined with the growing interest in the subject matter, could force political action, said Representative Edward J. Markey , a Malden Democrat.
``Al Gore becomes everyone's favorite science teacher of all time in this movie; he's the latter-day Mr. Wizard," Markey said. ``It's something that has now flipped for people. The public is paying attention."
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