King Corn

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In Aaron Woolf's thought-provoking documentary, friends Ian Cheney and Curt Ellis move back to America's Corn Belt to plant an acre of the nation's most-grown and most-subsidized grain and follow their crop into the U.S. food supply. What they learn about genetically modified seeds, powerful herbicides and the realities of modern farming calls into question government subsidies, the fast-food lifestyle and the quality of what we eat.
Netflix Rating: 3.7
NYT Review: "King Corn" is a gentle, meandering entry in the Truth-Seeking Comic Hero genre, as practiced by Michael Moore and Morgan Spurlock. Read the review
Rotten Tomatoes: Fresh 95%: Fresh: 19 Rotten: 1 Rotten Tomatoes page
Top Rotten Tomatoes Critics: A breezy diary from a pair of first-time farmers, as well as a wry rebuke to a nation devoted to eating cheaply but not necessarily well, King Corn makes its points without much finger-wagging. full review

Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune

While there's no startling news here -- most people know that high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is a staple in food processing and isn't particularly good for us -- this documentary neatly, and often humorously, summarizes a very unhealthy situation. full review

Walter V. Addiego, San Francisco Chronicle

King Corn is entertaining enough, but it's also a moral, crucially skeptical road trip down the food chain. full review

Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times

Deftly balances humor and insight. full review

Dennis Harvey, Variety

It should be required viewing before going into a supermarket, McDonald's or your very own refrigerator. full review

Ann Hornaday, Washington Post

King Corn insists that we recognize the Corn Belt's beauty and intelligence along with its somewhat self-induced plight. full review

Janice Page, Boston Globe

Aaron Woolf's we-are-what-we-eat documentary King Corn is a lively introduction to the corn industrial complex. full review

Owen Gleiberman, Entertainment Weekly

A deceptively intelligent new entry in the regular-Joe documentary genre. full review

Andrew O'Hehir, Salon.com

This is as much a thoughtful meditation on the plight of the American farmer as it is a rant against our expanding waistlines. full review

Robert Wilonsky, Village Voice