Dirt! The Movie

PG 7.1
2009 1 hr 26 min Documentary

A look at man's relationship with Dirt. Dirt has given us food, shelter, fuel, medicine, ceramics, flowers, cosmetics and color --everything needed for our survival. For most of the last ten thousand years we humans understood our intimate bond with dirt and the rest of nature. We took care of the soils that took care of us. But, over time, we lost that connection. We turned dirt into something "dirty." In doing so, we transform the skin of the earth into a hellish and dangerous landscape for all life on earth. A millennial shift in consciousness about the environment offers a beacon of hope - and practical solutions.

  • Cast:
    Jamie Lee Curtis , Gary Vaynerchuk , Vandana Shiva , Sebastião Salgado , Alice Waters

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Reviews

ThedevilChoose
2009/08/07

When a movie has you begging for it to end not even half way through it's pure crap. We've all seen this movie and this characters millions of times, nothing new in it. Don't waste your time.

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TaryBiggBall
2009/08/08

It was OK. I don't see why everyone loves it so much. It wasn't very smart or deep or well-directed.

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Stephanie
2009/08/09

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

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Ortiz
2009/08/10

Excellent and certainly provocative... If nothing else, the film is a real conversation starter.

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David Ferguson
2009/08/11

Greetings again from the darkness. "Dirt might be more alive than we are." It could be a tag line for the newest horror flick, but instead it's one of the key elements to this well presented and informative documentary that's been around, and discussed, for a few years.Inspired by William Bryant Logan's book "Dirt: The Ecstatic Skin of the Earth", the three filmmakers roll out interviews from what must be a some kind of world record in professional diversity: farmers (of course), Mycologist (had to look it up), Professors, Physicist, a Pastor, Entomologist, Anthropologist, Ecologist, Horticulturalist, a Native American spokesperson, a prison worker, photographer, a wine expert (who eats dirt) and even a Nobel Laureate. This group would make up quite the dinner party! Doing much more showing than telling, the film avoids the doom and gloom of so many "destroying the earth" documentaries and instead uses splashes of animation to lighten the mood, while still making serious and important points. Still, the negative light is directed at monoculture farming (single crop over large land areas), strip-mining, logging, fertilizers and pesticides.On the bright side, hope is provided through many isolated efforts of those trying to save the dirt! These aren't extremists picketing corporate farms, but rather groups of people doing what they can. Rooftop gardening and schoolyard gardens (by ripping out asphalt) are two of the most interesting. A fascinating point is made that if Ethiopia were properly farmed, it could feed all of Africa.The story of Clyde's pickup is pretty interesting as well - though I wondered why it never got towed. We get a history lesson on the use of dirt as a building material, and how man's greed created the Dust Bowl, but somehow the one thing that is stuck in my head is Dino Pee ... the point that all of Earth's water is continually recycled, and every glass of water we drink goes back millions of years and could contain traces of ... well you get the idea.

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Billy Frederickson
2009/08/12

it's awful because it is about dirt and it was boring, but if it was made into a musical, I'd dig it! Dirt is a dry movie. There is no heart and soil in it as it describes in the tag line. I was super excited for this movie only for it to be one I wish I could bury in my backyard. It lacked substance. I was really looking forward to using this movie for my class on environmental biology for the dirt chapter, but it would put my students to sleep. Yes, all those puns were intended, as that's the type of person I am. Haha. Don't watch this movie. I found nothing positive to add to this review because it was just a waste of my time. For your own sanity, please do not watch the movie Dirt!, unless it is recreated in a more entertaining manner.

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rquern
2009/08/13

Dirt! The Movie systematically and cyclically lays out the relationship between dirt and humankind. The film makes a strong case for taking care of the environment and sustaining the soil. Everything we do from agriculture to mining impact the soil. The recurring theme is that dirt is a living organism, and without it, human life will not continue as we know it.Overall this film gives a fair account of the environmental impact of dirt, and the importance of sustainable practices to keep our dirt, and ourselves, alive and healthy. There are a couple accounts of religious connections with dirt, and potential environmental impacts that some would view as over the top. If this film is viewed with an open mind it can provide knowledge and insight to a topic that is more important than many realize, and the dirt animations give a fun perspective to the dirt's side of the story!

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evening1
2009/08/14

I imagine some film-school graduates daring each other to make an interesting movie on a boring topic and one of them comes up with, yep, dirt. This documentary makes a few interesting points about the environment but after watching it I still don't sense its raison d'etre. I enjoyed listening to a few of the talking heads, including such unconventional choices as an ebullient female African Nobel winner, and another lively woman, an activist in India, but this documentary suffers from having too vague and sprawling a focus. Was it really necessary to film an open-eyed suicide victim in India, surrounded by his disadvantaged family and all those buzzing flies? This movie just didn't grab me!

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