78
Metascore
11 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 100Portland OregonianShawn LevyPortland OregonianShawn LevyWe've seen documentaries with more daring themes, greater drama, sharper craft and timelier subject matter. But few have been as affecting as The Real Dirt on Farmer John.
- 88Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertChicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertThis is a loving, moving, inspiring, quirky documentary that was made while the lives it records were being lived.
- 80Village VoiceVillage VoiceAt times, the film plays like an extended infomercial for John's new company, Angelic Organics, but the agrarian fantasy is so compelling here that the revitalization of the American family farm begins to seem not just possible, but probable.
- 80The New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisThe New York TimesJeannette CatsoulisOffers one man's extraordinary life as a gateway to a larger history of tragedy and transition. It's an unflinching account of what farming takes -- and, more important, what it gives back.
- 80L.A. WeeklyElla TaylorL.A. WeeklyElla TaylorIt’s fascinating that this portrait of the rise, fall and rise of Midwestern organic farmer John Peterson can be read in so many different ways, only some of which appear intentionally in Taggart Siegel’s sympathetic documentary about his friend and fellow artist.
- 75Chicago TribuneMichael WilmingtonChicago TribuneMichael WilmingtonIn many ways, it's a painful story, but it's also full of curious triumphs and outlandish redemptions.
- 75San Francisco ChronicleWalter AddiegoSan Francisco ChronicleWalter AddiegoA loose, amiable documentary tracking several decades in the life of this most unusual farmer.
- 75New York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanNew York Daily NewsElizabeth WeitzmanDespite the movie's intimate nature, Siegel deftly broadens his view to observe the culture and conditions of contemporary American farming. Don't be surprised if, by the finish, you wind up fantasizing about your own rural homestead.
- 70Chicago ReaderJ.R. JonesChicago ReaderJ.R. JonesA beguiling combination of agrarian ode and “The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test,” deepened by Peterson's square sincerity as he struggles to find himself in relation to his family's land.
- 70VarietyScott FoundasVarietyScott FoundasExamines 50-odd years in the life of its eponymous subject -- a most compelling character -- and in doing so literally provides the viewer with food for thought.