Food, Inc

Food, Inc (2008)

97% on Rotten Tomatoes (out of 77 reviews)

Runtime: 94 minutes

Directed by: Robert Kenner

Starring: Michael Pollan, Eric Schlosser

From: Magnolia Pictures

To copy and paste from a MySpace entry I wrote in July:

The first thing was on Friday night, when I went to the Regal Theatre at Winter Park to attend the opening night of a documentary entitled Food Inc. I wasn’t really planning on seeing it but then Friday afternoon I realized that I had Jack Shit to do on that night so I might as well go and see a movie. The documentary-to explain it as simply as possible-exposes the food industry and explains that much of the stuff you buy in the supermarket is really from one of a few companies, and naturally that kind of control leads to people on the farm being mistreated, the rise in E. coli, and all that stuff. One thing they did was push for organic foods; a few weeks ago I talked about my feelings on THAT subject (to me, it’s all hogwash as the idea of non-organic foods being “bad” for you is just unfounded, I think) and even though they mentioned it here as a way to go against the grain (pun intended in some ways) I still wasn’t exactly convinced that organic is really the best way to go no matter what. Still, it was a very interesting and informative documentary that explained something I didn’t know too much about, even if I didn’t always agree with it.

One guy involved with the movie, Eric Schlosser, wrote the very good book Fast Food Nation a few years ago (and was the only great part on the DVD of that overrated Super Size Me; before anyone asks, I haven’t seen the fictional movie version of Fast Food Nation, as I’ve heard mixed reviews on it) and also wrote the book Reefer Madness (the title taken from a hilariously awful 1930’s movie) about underground economies in America; I also recommend that.

The screening had a decent enough attendance and there wasn’t really any problem with the audience, which is always noteworthy. A pair of people from a local organic co-op place (meaning that you order food online and you can pick it up at various locations; a novel idea, at least) were plugging their wares there.

I don't have too much else to say about it now, except that it's coming out on DVD in a few weeks so you can see it that way. Sure, I don't know how the filmmakers think the world could be fed under the model of farming that they advocate, it's still an important movie to see if you're wondering about our food supply, where it comes from, and how it's run.