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A.U.M Films and Media, 90 minutes Reviewed by Megan Serratore Cowspiracy is a political, social, and cultural documentary about the environmental toll of the agribusiness on planet Earth. The film opens with a quote from Martin Luther King Jr. that states the following: “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends”. This quote preludes the overall theme and message of the film—if people do not talk about the negative effects of the livestock industry now, we will regret it when it is already too late to save the planet. The documentary is produced by Kip Anderson and Keegan Kuhn. However, Anderson is the sole narrator of the film and takes the viewer with him on his educational journey about the agriculture industry, the environment, and nonhuman animals. Anderson was first inspired to get involved in the environmental movement by former U.S. vice president and climate change activist, Al Gore, when he saw Gore’s global warming film The Inconvenient Truth. He started turning the lights off as soon as possible, took short showers, ditched his car and rode his bike to work. He did everything that environmental organizations recommended. However, these organizations were not talking about how individuals could improve the planet by adjusting their diet choices. When Anderson learns that agriculture is the biggest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and human-induced climate change, he is determined to learn more about the issue and find out why environmental organizations are avoiding the subject. By the end of the film, Anderson is inspired to adopt a vegan lifestyle, which is the most significant way individuals can make a lifestyle change to help stop the imminent death of the planet and all living beings that occupy it. It is likely the viewer will be contemplating a vegan lifestyle at the end of the film, too, as the documentary poses a strong argument in favor of it.
Cowspiracy is a must-see documentary that exposes the scary truth about agribusiness that the industry tries to keep quiet. It will leave the viewer feeling a heightened concern for the future of the planet. However, the beginning of the film is not emotionally convincing as the documentary ignores the nonhuman animal perspective. It is not until the last half hour or so when Anderson finally discusses the well-being or lack of well-being per se, of nonhuman animals in regard to the livestock industry that uses them as mere products for financial gain. By the close of the film, the viewer has absorbed sound data about agriculture and the environment and experienced a surge of emotions as Anderson exposes the exploitation of nonhuman animals in the industry. The viewer realizes that a plant-based society is the only way individuals can sustainably and ethically live on this planet. The documentary is aided by expertise from Anderson’s interviews with environmental organization leaders, environmental researchers, and with people who own and operate agribusinesses. He even has discussions with members of the “Animal Agriculture Alliance”, a pro-livestock lobby group. Many of the environmental organizations skirt around the agriculture/environmental ties when Anderson asks about it. Although most admit that it is an issue, they are hesitant to discuss it further. Later, we find out that the agriculture industry has legal resources that could put people who speak out against the industry at danger. To further shed light on this important part of the issue, Anderson interviews Howard Lyman, a former cattle rancher. Lyman was sued by the cattle industry after speaking out about the environmental toll of agriculture on the Oprah show years before. If this does not have the viewers angry with the agriculture industry, they surely will be when the film shares the story of Sister Dorothy Stang, who was gunned down by a hired gunman from the cattle industry for speaking out against the destruction of the Amazon for grazing cattle. Along with Sister Stang, over 1100 other activists have been killed in Brazil during the last 20 years. The first half of the film presents confounding data that clearly persuades the viewer that this is indeed an issue worth caring about. Livestock production is the leading cause of human-induced climate change, ocean dead zones, habitat destruction, species extinction, and resource consumption destroying environments today. It accounts for 30% of the world’s water consumption, occupies 45% of Earth’s land, and is responsible for 91% of Brazilian Amazon destruction. The documentary makes it easy for the viewer to visualize the environmental toll of agriculture in comparison to other environmental issues by comparing data in graphs and other figures. The filmmakers successfully convince the audience that animal agriculture is the leading cause of environmental destruction. Not only do researchers admit that agriculture is not sustainable, but the filmmakers even interview owners and operators in the industry that say it is not maintainable at the rate humans demand it. The Earth cannot provide enough resources to feed and nourish the nonhuman animals we raise to feed ourselves. Anderson visits Markegard Family Grass-Fed Farm and interviews the Markegard family. The footage shows happy and friendly cows and pigs in an open prairie as they interact with the Markegard children who love to spend time with the animals. However, the daughter admits that they should not bond with the animals because they will eventually be slaughtered. Co-owner Erik Markegard even says that it is hard to see the animals slaughtered when you positively interact with them every day. He acknowledges that it is important for people to realize that the packaged meat they buy at the store was once a living, breathing creature. Anderson also interviews the president of Clover Stornetta Dairy and visits the Bivalve Organic Dairy farm. Both the president of Clover Stornetta Dairy and the co-owner and operator of Bivalve Organic Dairy concede in their interviews that dairy is not sustainable. Not only have the filmmakers quoted environmental researchers and organizations admitting that the agribusiness is detrimental, but the documentary even shares the perspective of people employed in the industry who willingly admit the same thing. The documentary avoids some biases by obtaining information from multiple resources and forming a well-rounded argument. Although Anderson fails to point out instances of nonhuman animal exploitation and welfare issues in the beginning of the film, there are some gruesome scenes throughout the documentary that shed light on animal cruelty. About one-third of the way into the film, Anderson visits some fisheries and shows footage of carts of dead fish lying in piles of ice and their own blood. Some flop around while a fisherman prods at them with a sharp tool. Later, when Anderson visits the Bivalve Organic Dairy farm, the documentary exposes the living conditions of the cows. The cows are crammed next to each other in stalls and hooked up to machines that pump milk. Their utters are red and swollen. The most traumatic scene shows a cow that is no longer suitable for the dairy farm being scooped up and carried off by a bulldozer to be used for meat in the beef industry. Another scene shows the culling of elephants. The elephants try to protect each other as men shoot them down one by one. One man even climbs on their dead bodies to finish off elephants that are still alive underneath elephant corpses. In all of these gruesome scenes there is little to no commentary about the obvious nonhuman animal suffering. It is not until the end of the film when Anderson finally makes an effort to discuss the nonhuman animal perspective. Most of the documentary focuses on how agriculture will affect people and the environment, but it does not make a strong effort to point out how other animals suffer. The turning point in the film is when Anderson witnesses a backyard slaughter of a duck. The scene is unforgettably horrifying. Anderson finally acknowledges the cruelty of agriculture and how this too plays into his ultimate decision to embrace a vegan diet. Not only has the documentary concluded that veganism is the most sustainable diet but also that it is the only truly moral lifestyle. Cowspiracy is most appropriate for high school or college classes. However, this film should also fall into the limelight of communities across the country and globe. For the film to truly be successful, everyone must be educated on this issue. The documentary will certainly instigate concern regarding the plague of animal agriculture on the planet. The filmmakers are reserved about addressing nonhuman animal exploitation throughout. From the nonhuman animal perspective, the film is substandard. Despite the lack of commentary on the exploitation of other animals, the message of the film is evident and thoroughly backed up by research, observations, and interviews. The filmmakers outline the issue and also offer a viable solution. Above all, the documentary is motivational and invites the viewer to be a part of the change. Comments are closed.
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This is a website about nonhuman animals, written by human animals taking a Society and Animals class at Minnesota State University, Mankato. Archives
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