From director Robert Golden, the environmental documentary This Good Earth dives deep into the world of sustainable agriculture, focusing specifically on Dorset, a county in Southwest England. The film is split into three 30-minute parts — Soil, Land, and Food — and features local people as experts. Farmers, bakers, food bank volunteers, and others are all part of this conversation regarding climate-friendly food production and the accessibility of healthy food for all people.
The hyper-local scope of the documentary is its strong point, especially since many environmental documentaries choose to look at climate change and other ecological topics at a global level. Getting to know all of the people involved in the community and their different roles in acting on global warming is inspirational. In using multiple perspectives, Golden drives home the importance of community collaboration in sustainability and weathering the impact of global warming.
Additionally, Golden’s direction and the cinematography of the film are fantastic. Each shot is stunning and adds to the richness of the discussions throughout the film. The camera takes an intimate look at the lives of farmers, especially, and brings the viewer onto the farm to see how the farms operate.
Even though the film is about the people of Dorset, Golden incorporates many statistics about food production and health internationally that tie back into what the interviewees are discussing. At times, though, these facts feel out of place. This Good Earth seems to miss its action statement, leaving audiences unclear about how to move forward with the information the documentary presented. These critiques could be mitigated by setting up a focused post-screening discussion as part of environmental programming or in a class focused on sustainable agriculture, food systems, or environmental theory.
Overall, the film serves as a primer for sustainable agriculture and food justice. Seasoned environmentalists may not find this film informative or useful, but it is definitely a good environmental documentary to screen for seed library launches or other gardening and community agriculture events.
Environmental activist and founder of the Transition movement Rob Hopkins agrees in his review, saying, “As a tool to engage people and communities in thinking about food and farming in their local area, it is a powerful and fascinating overview.”
This film would make a great purchase for documentary film buyers interested in local solutions to global warming or wanting to add environmental documentaries to their media library.
What academic subjects would this film be suitable for?
This Good Earth would be a suitable documentary for environmental studies, food systems, sustainable agriculture, and community organizing courses.
Can this film be used in a library education program?
This environmental documentary would be a perfect selection for educational library programming about local food systems, agriculture, and local environmental activism.
Discover more titles with our list of environmental movies.