This documentary tries valiantly to be some kind of vast doomsday revelation. But by spreading itself too thin, and leaping from one flimsy point to another, it fails to come up with enough specifics, or even a coherent thesis, that would make its 1hr 45min run time feel worthwhile.
"The problem isn't countries or people trying to secure their food supply, the problem is how," journalist (and star of the film) Nathan Halverson sums up the premise. "They" are grabbing other people's land, sucking aquifers dry. It's a good premise for a documentary. Unfortunately, The Grab is not that documentary. It's based entirely on anecdotes and sweeping quotes from various interested parties - all very loosely connected by narration from Halverson.
"What if... instead of grass,we use bacteria? And instead of cows, we use fungi?" Sure - what if? What if the filmmakers had stuck to their main point, about the global 'land grab' and left bio-engineering for another time? The Grab consists almost entirely of such half-hearted digressions.
Worst is all the time spent talking about Erik Prince, founder of the Blackwater mercenary group. The reporters in the film seem particularly proud of a dump of emails - colorfully referred to as The Trove - which ultimately yields no revelation other than the name of Prince's Chinese employer. "We expect these emails are gonna become a playbook for how people are looking to grab up food and water," says Halverson. But that connection is never strongly enough to justify the time spent on Prince.
World food prices are soaring! Yes, this is worrying. But are they soaring because of factors such as Russia reducing its wheat exports - or because the few companies that control global food markets are exercising unrestrained monopolistic power? Who does control the world food markets? Dunno. But, but... Russia is raising cattle! Worse... they're hiring *American* cowboys to do it! Well, *an* American cowboy - we're given only one example (including some nice footage of a Russian rodeo). If you're hoping to find out how Russian beef production has grown over the years, look elsewhere.
Security experts are apparently worried about "the possibility of Russia using its food supply as a weapon." The film doesn't specify in what way this would be a departure from the status quo in global markets. Every country seeks the best deal, uses its unique resources for leverage. Is Russia especially bad in this regard? No idea. But, but... global warming will thaw the Russian north and open a huge new potential for control of food supplies! Okay... but is melted tundra the same thing as rich prairie farmland? Probably not even close. Another big pronouncement backed by zero science and no expert comment.
China is making food security for its population a high priority. Okay, that's interesting. There's even a snippet of interesting historical background - the fact that a US embargo contributed to the great Chinese famine in the late 1950s. But the Chinese move is presented as if somehow sinister... and again, there are no statistics, no details of various national policies. Much later, Halverson acknowledges that Western countries ought to do the same. But there's no background on existing national policies, in China or anywhere else.
The Grab is nicely produced, and raises some important issues. It's even thought-provoking at times. But it fails to provide solid information or deep perspective. If you want to know about our food supply, watch Food Inc. 1 and the recent Food Inc. 2. If you want to learn about the geopolitics of natural resources, there are many better sources than The Grab.
"The problem isn't countries or people trying to secure their food supply, the problem is how," journalist (and star of the film) Nathan Halverson sums up the premise. "They" are grabbing other people's land, sucking aquifers dry. It's a good premise for a documentary. Unfortunately, The Grab is not that documentary. It's based entirely on anecdotes and sweeping quotes from various interested parties - all very loosely connected by narration from Halverson.
"What if... instead of grass,we use bacteria? And instead of cows, we use fungi?" Sure - what if? What if the filmmakers had stuck to their main point, about the global 'land grab' and left bio-engineering for another time? The Grab consists almost entirely of such half-hearted digressions.
Worst is all the time spent talking about Erik Prince, founder of the Blackwater mercenary group. The reporters in the film seem particularly proud of a dump of emails - colorfully referred to as The Trove - which ultimately yields no revelation other than the name of Prince's Chinese employer. "We expect these emails are gonna become a playbook for how people are looking to grab up food and water," says Halverson. But that connection is never strongly enough to justify the time spent on Prince.
World food prices are soaring! Yes, this is worrying. But are they soaring because of factors such as Russia reducing its wheat exports - or because the few companies that control global food markets are exercising unrestrained monopolistic power? Who does control the world food markets? Dunno. But, but... Russia is raising cattle! Worse... they're hiring *American* cowboys to do it! Well, *an* American cowboy - we're given only one example (including some nice footage of a Russian rodeo). If you're hoping to find out how Russian beef production has grown over the years, look elsewhere.
Security experts are apparently worried about "the possibility of Russia using its food supply as a weapon." The film doesn't specify in what way this would be a departure from the status quo in global markets. Every country seeks the best deal, uses its unique resources for leverage. Is Russia especially bad in this regard? No idea. But, but... global warming will thaw the Russian north and open a huge new potential for control of food supplies! Okay... but is melted tundra the same thing as rich prairie farmland? Probably not even close. Another big pronouncement backed by zero science and no expert comment.
China is making food security for its population a high priority. Okay, that's interesting. There's even a snippet of interesting historical background - the fact that a US embargo contributed to the great Chinese famine in the late 1950s. But the Chinese move is presented as if somehow sinister... and again, there are no statistics, no details of various national policies. Much later, Halverson acknowledges that Western countries ought to do the same. But there's no background on existing national policies, in China or anywhere else.
The Grab is nicely produced, and raises some important issues. It's even thought-provoking at times. But it fails to provide solid information or deep perspective. If you want to know about our food supply, watch Food Inc. 1 and the recent Food Inc. 2. If you want to learn about the geopolitics of natural resources, there are many better sources than The Grab.
