sckuhner

This documentary attempts to convey a heartfelt tone to connect with family values of viewer. It does succeed in this endeavor. However as documentaries go, this misses the mark. It does nothing to explore the greater issues in the industry. Although Farmland is not necessarily obligated to explore or give answers for those issues. Undoubtedly these issues have a daily impact on the farmers they have profiled. With this in mind this documentary does a disservice to those it has interviewed and those who have viewed it by not representing or acknowledging the full repertoire of issues in play. There is, to some degree, an expectation of honesty and transparency within watching a documentary. This film may be honest to some degree about the lives of its farmers. But it omits important issues: GMOS, seed patents, morality of factory farming, etc. If it were to address these issues in some way, regardless of the stance, this documentary would be more respectable. However, in omitting these issues Farmland loses credibility and gives merit to the critique that it is simply a very long infomercial for the food industry. Again the soul of a documentary is in its transparency and honesty of the information provided, but also in the motivation for its production. Farmland further muddles the progressing dialogue in regards to farming and agriculture. It does so not by posing important, poignant questions... But by doing jazz hands near the human interest part of this story and not revisiting the important issues in play in the United States. Liberal, conservative, or moderate stance; The viewer deserves a full exploration of these issues. It parades itself as something it is not.