King Corn (2007)

the leading man is my tpye

Just perfect...

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

Undoubtedly, this documentary starts quite slow. They started off talking about how they were going to plant an acre of corn and follow it throughout its lifespan, including all the way to consumer. Nice premise, but over the first 30 minutes of this were talking about planting and growing corn, with no mention of where it was going ("it" being both the corn and the documentary). My wife even asked at one point where the heck this documentary was going.Once they sold their corn in the documentary, it started to get interesting. They actually started talking about where the corn goes, and all the various ways it gets into our bodies. Most of the rest of the documentary was devoted to this topic, and the makers of the film managed to explore this topic without judgment. While you could infer the filmmakers' position from the film if you're reasonably intelligent, they don't come out and say it explicitly. They allow the audience to draw their own conclusions. This is one of the bonuses of the film.Though a lot of the information in the film is old and relatively well known, especially if you watch some of the modern food documentaries, it's a nice introduction to a lot of the food issues we face as a society.

The film "King Corn" is a strong piece of cinema. It gives us a deep look at corn. Yes, corn. Many might think that something as simple as corn can hold no real relevance to the world, or any of its people. This film proves otherwise.It follows Ian Cheney and Curt Ellis, as they are followed by director Aaron Woolf and his crew. After a scientist analyzes hair samples from both men, they find something pretty startling- their hair is made of corn? (Well, not exactly. But it's in there.) They go on an odyssey, traveling to Iowa, in order to grow an acre of corn their own, and trace it from first being planted, through its growth, to the harvest, and finally, to how it's processed… and how it ends up in our hair.The film is remarkable in its accessibility. Both of the lead on-screen talent are very engaging and likable. The film also tends to shy away from putting its foot down in the matter. It doesn't say "This is good" or "This is bad", or "blame this person or that organization" it merely presents the evidence and the reaction of Cheney and Ellis to said evidence and the situations that occur. It remains in the middle to an extent, and while it does present the modern corn industry in a negative light (rightfully so, I might add), it isn't too preachy about it. In addition, the filmmakers really try to make the documentary easy to watch and to comprehend, using simple tactics and design to illustrate some of the more abstract points, especially the political jargon and dealings that are brought up. Graphs and stop-motion animation are used to drive home these tough-to-understand concepts in a unique way. When talking about how political farming programs help larger farms grow and can negatively affect smaller farms, rather than seeing something as complex as the talk going on, we see stop-motion-animated Fisher Price toys scurrying about, visually representing what the narration is explaining. It was endearing, and actually quite effective in driving the point home. Quite brilliant, and without spoiling anything, especially touching when a poignant scene later on adds relevance to these stop-motion images.The film also takes a hard look at the negative side of some of the impacts and bi-products of the corn industry. It does show us how government farming programs encourage the mass production of corn by industrial farms. The sheer scope of this industry rewards the larger industrial farms, but over time seems to phase out and eliminate smaller farms, in essence nearly destroying the classical image of the family farm. It is also explained that corn isn't just used for consumption by humans- it's used for other purposes, such as feeding livestock that will eventually be slaughtered for consumption. However, the corn-based feed negatively impacts the farm animals, who aren't "built" to consume such foods, and harms the value of the meat, by dramatically increasing the fat content. Corn is also used for making artificial sweeteners (such as the infamous High Fructose Corn Syrup, which holds virtually no nutritional value), which are used as a sugar substitute in many different foods. The sheer volume of High Fructose Corn Syrup, while making foods cheaper, is arguably also poisoning people. It's financial perks are matched or even outweighed by the health problems it can cause. The parts of the film dealing with HFCS are deeply troubling. I find it hard to stomach that this topic doesn't get more coverage than it already does- our cheaper foods are killing us.For all that "King Corn" does properly, the film does do some wrong, though. It could be argued that a large portion of the movie is a moot point and ultimately pointless in the end- and that is Ellis and Cheney's growing of the acre of corn. While it was a nice statement and image, it is revealed that tracking their corn is a fruitless effort- it can not be tracked due to the sheer volume of corn harvested and processed. And so, Ellis and Cheney are left to mathematically figure out what likely happened to their corn. (They likely knew up front before planting that the corn would be untraceable, it seems unfathomable that they wouldn't have known) While seeing them grow their corn was interesting, the fact of the matter is, it could have been cut down somewhat (I would argue it is important enough to keep in the film, but at least five minutes could have been trimmed from the segments involving their planting, caring for and ultimately harvesting the plants), and the spare time used to further educate the audience on the subject. It just felt like a failed potential to myself.Also, the film does hit a few moments where everything dulls down for a couple minutes, and it drags on, but then again, this seems to happen with most documentaries I've seen, so I can forgive it.But these errors really don't detract much, they're more nit-picks from me, on how I would've changed the movie, and I will say, they didn't really affect my love for everything else. I adored this documentary!I felt "King Corn" was a great educational piece. It teaches much, and is also a fun experience. I give it an 8 out of 10.

yet another slap at American farmers under the guise of making folks feel guilty for being unable, in today's economy, to buy high priced products raised by some ex Berkley hippie in a 50' backyard garden for $15 a lb.I'm not sure when it became so popular to vilify American agriculture, but here you have it. anyone who was raised in the midwest knows about 'feed corn'- it would be stupid to try to eat it yourself, it's high in complex starches so that ruminants can extract more nutrients from it. it's easy to forget when you really know nothing about farming that people and animals process foods differently.we have 390 million people in this country and farmers are forced to produce more and more with less and less. the two guys acting as if they were babes in the woods was insulting to the people who do this for a living every day. go starve yourself for a day or so or live only off the foods you yourself can grow and maintain before seeking out movies like this meant to portray our farmers as greedy minions of the evil empire of corporations.as for all these references to Omnivore's Dilemma- don't let that title mislead you. it's a pro vegan book. any one referencing it and reviewing this movie as a terrible spotlight on how slaughter animals are fed is trying to spook or guilt you into never eating meat again.get off your asses, America and go visit some real farms instead of watching a lousy crock-umentary like this.

College buddies return to a place called Greene in Iowa which was their ancestral home. This is a disturbing documentary but handled with intelligence and warmth. Basically it deals with the fact that because we are all demanding cheap food we are prepared to ignore the enormous health and environmental repercussions of over production. The issue is handled brilliantly and it will be easy to see how the film makers will be (wrongly) accused of exaggeration. Just like climate skeptics today these guys will be accused of scare mongering. That's the sad reality. The film makers however have been fair and balanced. What's wrong with corn? Essentially nothing but the corn is being fed to cattle. This is where it gets very disturbing. Its clever how the industry has used the term "grain fed" as a positive. What is disturbing is the corn produced is nothing like the juicy variety we like smothered in butter, indeed it is almost inedible! The corn is fed to cattle. It gets worse. To help the cattle avoid disease there are anti biotics added to the corn.The potential dangers here are too horrible to think about.The humanitarian aspects of modern family are another issue but you will find the film disturbing. I had a look in my pantry and was shocked to see just how much corn syrup is used. We have a right to know what we are eating and King Corn is a revelation but not a very comforting one. I could speak more about the issue itself but others have done that. It is scary and it makes me think of the field of dreams as a field of nightmares and I doubt Elvira Madigan will be running through corn fields in America. The documentary itself is rational without being cloyingly provocative. No preaching and no bad guys. The directors treat the farmers as victims as well. The people in the film are just lovely. They are hard working Americans trapped in an unethical industry. We, the consumers, are the real culprits; our demand to keep food cheap has led us to a diet which causes diabetes and other health scares. The film must be seen and its got the zappiest cleverest little ending. Sadly a limited audience will see this. It wont be on main stream TV, indeed I only saw it as it was recommended by a friend. One thing is for certain is if is shown on television it will not be sponsored by any fast food chains.