No. 55 (2021) PERCY Vs GOLIATH July 4th.

 

Film No. 55 (2021) July 4th.  4:55 PM  FENWICK CINEMAS Cine 2,  Esperance.

"Some guys buy their seeds from the big guys every year to plant. Me, I save my own. I'm a seed saver". (Percy's voice-over to set the scene for the "main course").

Percy Schmeiser (click link after viewing PERCY), Canadian canola farmer extraordinaire, gained international notoriety, along with his wife Louise when multinational, agrochemical company Monsanto sued them for "stealing" their technology (genetically modified canola seed) to grow their crops. A story worth telling, you'd think, and you would be right. Director Clark Johnson (JUANITA) has created a wonderful tribute story, so North American and Canadian farmers in particular can salute his deeds.

In a nut-shell, Percy was a seed saver, he saved seed from the previous years crop to use, rather than buying it from multinationals like Monsanto. Monsanto accused Percy of stealing their technology because testing they did on his fields showed Monsanto seeds were present. Why? They had blown in from passing trucks and adjacent fields. So, was Percy Schmeiser a thief?

For the next 100 minutes, sitting comfortably in the hands of Johnson and his writers Garfield Miller and Hilary Prior we learn the answer to Monsanto's accusation. And yes, there is a touch of the ERIN BROCKOVICH'S about PERCY V GOLIATH but for me there is a whole lot less audience manipulation and more silent contemplation in key moments. A tribute to Christopher Walken's interpretation of the man that was Percy Schmeiser.

The talented Zach Braff (GARDEN STATE, SCRUBS) legitimises the role of Percy's lawyer Jackson Weaver. Rebecca Salcau is a devised character played by Christina Ricci (THE ADDAMS FAMILY), in what is possibly her best big screen performance in years. I say devised because she is a hybrid of many environmentalists who spent time supporting Percy as he continued his fight. The cast has a chemistry which gives the story gravitas. The story goes that before he died, the real Percy got to watch Walken (a giant of his craft) depict who he was.  

There are many North American and Canadian farmers who still regard Percy as a thief. It's not surprising, a vast majority of farmers world wide are GMO farmers. But after reading more about the realities of their fight I discovered that Percy and Louise bore no grudge, they simply fought to farm their way and of course, for their right not to be bullied. 10GUMS.