Review of Forks Over Knives (2011) by Timothy S — 07 Nov 2011

Some documentaries mean to educate and others simply to entertain, but "Forks Over Knives" is one of the few I've seen with a much loftier goal. It aims to save lives. Now, I can't say how successful it will be at that outside of its fanatical and hardcore believers. Those people follow the film as if it were the gospel, but I feel for a lot of people, it will fall on deaf ears. Most won't even see it at all. In that respect, it will not be successful outside of its core audience, but it's even less successful as a film.

There is a lot of information here, too much in fact, and its presented with all the flair of a high school health class film. Some of it is scary, and all of it is assuredly factual, but does it have to be this dull? The film drones on and on about the benefits of whole foods and a plant-based diet, many times becoming very repetitive and losing the viewer. There's only so much bad news that I can take at one ninety minute sitting. It has the reverse effect and you just tune it out after a while. You can't help but wondering if the whole thing is just a cheap ploy to sell cookbooks.

The movie and the doctors featured in it have their work cut out for them trying to reverse decades of popular thought such as meat and dairy are not only good for you but necessary for a balanced diet. The film has an uphill battle since the audience for the film will be filled with proponents of the diet, making it even harder to convert anyone.

"Forks Over Knives" will scare you, but will it scare you enough to change your entire life?