Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

It would be easy for a review to focus entirely on this documentary's visuals. For they are overwhelming. I suspect some persons even would scorn the documentary for "subjecting" us to these images, at least so many of them. But I think this would be misguided. For, with only a few exceptions, the documentary does not use its images in a way that's sensationalist. They merely document the conditions to which many animals are subjected. The problem, I think, is that we -- as a society -- actively avoid looking at any images documenting our treatment of unwanted pets, animals raised for meat, animals used for entertainment (e.g., circus), and animals used in experiments. Given this, Earthlings is simultaneously overwhelming and overdue. By itself, this is enough to recommend watching the film. However, the documentary is much more than this. Its creators obviously are attempting to provoke us to think. This is apparent within the first minute, as its prologue introduces its viewers to core moral principles that have defined the animal liberation movement. And it does this wonderfully. Its ability to articulate these principles clearly and concisely would make this film great supplemental material for any course covering its topics (I plan to show Earthlings in my community college applied ethics class when it examines Peter Singer's "Animal Liberation.") This prologue frames the film's visuals as they document our treatment of unwanted pets, animals raised for meat, animals used for entertainment, and animals used in experiments. It does this so well that rarely does a minute pass without the film challenging us to question some of the fundamental assumptions seemingly guiding our present treatment of these animals. This point is punctuated at the film's end, which challenges us to rethink our understanding of animals, our relationship to them, and our co-existence on earth. In the end, the film is provocative in the best sense I can image. It does not merely ask us to memorize its concepts. It beautifully immerses its philosophical content within its medium (Through the wonderful harmony of its visuals, Moby's subtly haunting music, and Joaquin Phoenix's minimalist, yet impassioned narration) in a way that challenges us to rethink how we live our lives. Many are likely to be disturbed by this challenge (As a life-long meat eater, I understand how difficult it can be to respond to this challenge). But it is doing nothing more or less than educating us! While the film is not perfect, and it does seem to be guilty of some pseudoscience -- especially with its seemingly hyperbolic denials of the knowledge acquired through vivisection -- those of us who are saddened by the educational opportunities missed each and every day on television and film are likely to find Earthlings an inspirational reminder of such media's educational capacities.