Food Evolution (2017)

best movie i've ever seen.

A Major Disappointment

Like the great film, it's made with a great deal of visible affection both in front of and behind the camera.

It is neither dumb nor smart enough to be fun, and spends way too much time with its boring human characters.

Unfortunately, this documentary could really use an impartial editor. It is overly long, repetitive and self-indulgent. It came across as propaganda. It is a pity because I expect GMOs hold great promise, but I doubt this will change minds. For that to happen the benefits need to speak for themselves and be overwhelmingly better than the potential problems. I don't think GMOs have found their killer app yet, but they may be close.Far too long was spent opposition bashing and on the safety issues. Yes, they need to be safe but much more they need to be beneficial. You had to wait till near the end to hear much about the benefits. The most important application to me was the use in bananas, because bananas are typically propagated as clones at it is not possible to fight disease by conventional breeding. This was not explained. Also, it is a staple for many people. But it looked like a tiny trial which had not been tested as a crop. So it's probably not ready for prime time. The main benefit they focused on was papaya in Hawaii, but the main beneficiaries of this are the papaya growers, so this will be less persuasive to a public who may already be in conflict with industrial farming.Another major problem with the film is that it bought into the anti- GMO movement's characterisation of GMOs as one thing. The first mention of not treating it monolithically was the Kenyan parliament saying they will examine it on a case-by-case basis - hooray! Now if the film had taken that approach it would have been more convincing. There are legitimate criticisms of the GMO industry and some of the most damning were not mentioned which seems disingenuous. People have been harmed by terminator genes and having organic crops polluted by wind pollination from GM crops 2km away, and then prosecuted for 'theft'. I was startled to hear the mosquitoes had been engineered to produce scorpion venom. Maybe that's perfectly safe but I don't know enough to be able to tell. It must be possible to cause harm through GE, so I don't see how you can make a blanket judgement that it's safe any more than you can condemn it all as unsafe.I think that if the GE industry had taken some sensible precautions then the public backlash may have been prevented. For example, maybe germline engineering should have been embargoed for a long time (as it is in human research), or at least wind pollinated species.I hear they are producing a short version of the film - good, I expect that will help. I think this is a great example of why you need a producer over the top of a director, or we'd all have to sit though directors' cuts.

After seeing a dozen anti-science food documentaries this movie is a breath of fresh air.If you've seen Food, Inc., Super Size Me, GMOLOL, Food Matters, Hungry for Change, In Defense of Food, Cowspiracy, Vanishing of the Bees, Food Fight, King Corn, Fresh, Sustainable, In Organic We Trust, A Place at the Table, Politics of Food, or Food Politics, you need to see this movie.If you're freaked out about chemicals in your food, you need to see this movie. If you're avoiding gluten, GMOs, and non-organic foods because you're worried about your health, you need to see this movie.And if you're a garden-variety eater who believes organic food is grown without chemicals, you need to see this movie. If you share memes on Facebook or Twitter about the evil of modern agriculture, you need to see this movie.And if you think Moms Across America, Consumers Union, FoodBabe, Avocado Wolfe, Michael Pollan, Marion Nestle, Natural News, March Against Monsanto, Vandana Shiva, or any chiropractor, naturopath, or holistic personal trainer wants to keep you safe and healthy, you need to see this movie. And if you shop at Whole Foods, you need to see this movie (if you can afford it.)

If you are at all interested in the modern agriculture system, where our food comes from and how new technology fits into the system then definitely watch this movie. For anyone out there that has watched Food Inc., or read one of Michael Pollan's books and are curious about GMO technology and its safety this movie will lay down the facts for you in depth. Unlike many recent documentaries of recent years this one backs up statements with facts instead of scare tactics and scientists instead of "concerned citizens". The fact that DeGrasse Tyson is the narrator gives this movie instant credibility in my opinion. It also features Bill Nye and to my surprise Michael Pollan both commenting in favor of GMO technology. If you are curious about food then watch this movie.I watched this film as part of a pre-release screening.

For years discussions of GMOs, or genetically modified organisms, have been clouded by a fog of terrible cherry-picked documentaries that opponents use as "proof" that there are scary things under the bed that are lurking for us. All the while scientists stayed in their labs, doing the actual work, that showed GMOs have great benefits and potential for solving real problems of food security and environmental challenges we face.Finally a science-based look at genetic engineering and its applications helps explain the situation better. But it's not a nerdy lecture. It's a compelling story of papayas, bananas, and people in this drama. The heroes are the scientists and science advocates finally out of the labs to discuss this, the villains are charlatans peddling their detox potions and fear-mongering. And I could listen to Neil DeGrasse Tyson all day long. Disclosure: I am a scientist, and friends with many of the science participants in the film. But I had nothing to do with the film. I've just been lucky enough to see it ahead of release.Edit to add: beware of the folks who are talking about this film who haven't seen it. They are wrong about the contents of the film, I assure you.