Cinephile No. 647 "Food Evolution"
"Rethinking GMOs"
A Review of "Food Evolution" by Nathan H. Box
Starring: Raoul Adamchak, Charles Benbrook, Tamar Haspel, Director: Scott Hamilton Kennedy, Writer: Scott Hamilton Kennedy, Trace Sheehan
Rating: 4 Stars, SHOWTIME!
I am a liberal. If you are just stumbling across this article, please don't leave. If you've been reading for some time, you are more than likely not surprised. For my third movie of the 43rd Annual Seattle International Film Festival, I watched "Food Evolution." This is a documentary focused on returning science and facts to the GMO debate; a debate, where liberals have long ignored data and instead assumed the worst of major companies like Monsanto.
For the purpose of this review, I will not try to make the case for genetically modified organisms in our food supply. The film does a wonderful job of making their case; a case which changed my mind. Instead, I will focus my energies on two big takeaways.
In the climate change debate, we on the left refuse to believe it's a debate because of the overwhelming scientific evidence proving man's role in shaping and changing the environment. For those who disagree, we bludgeon them over the head with data, research, peer reviewed journals and cold hard evidence.
When it comes to vaccines and GMOs, we are hypocrites and this film proved that to me. We don't take proven scientific data at face value. We ignore peer reviewed journals. Instead, we take advice from people with no scientific background scattered across the internet as truth. We assume the worse of pharmaceutical and agricultural companies. If we want to seem credible in the face of a warming planet, then we must accept the science on vaccines and GMOs.
As a film, this documentary did what all great documentaries aim to do. It entertained, presented coherent facts, and provided an eye-opening experience. For all the films I have ever seen, few have ever changed my mind and made me question my confirmation bias. This movie did that and more. For that, I cannot recommend it enough.
Be good to each other,
-Nathan
