Forks over Knives

Forks over Knives

In this paper I will be reviewing Forks Over Knives. The three main criteria I will be using for this are: was it interesting, did the documentary provide enough factual information, and was the information given relevant to the target audience. Forks Over Knives is a life changing, fact filled documentary focused on the personal work of Dr. Colin Cambell and Dr. Esselstyn about the affects that eating animal based foods has on humans long term health.  The core claim of this film was “If we eliminate or greatly reduce refined, processed, and animal based foods we can prevent, and in certain cases, even reverse several of our worst diseases.”(Lee Fulkerson)

    I highly recommend this documentary to anyone who is still eating an animal based diet. I agree with the claims stated in this film. Lee Fulkerson, the director, did an amazing job making this health documentary. He made it very interesting and easy to understand. This film included an extensive amount of factual information and sources to back up their claims. I appreciated their use of animated graphics to help viewers understand the affects diseases such as heart disease and diabetes have on the human body. These doctors are very focused on making sure their audience understands the message they are trying to convey. They do a great job at it. I found the information given to be very relevant to every US citizen. Especially appealing to a younger generation. It is important to educate young people of the long term affects their diet will have on their bodies and this documentary was aiming to do just that.

    There was a strong use of ethos, logos, and pathos. Ethos was very prominent with all of the facts that were given. They included many scientific studies to prove their points. The use of logos or logic was also very present with the inclusion of many doctors opinions on american diet. There was a number of people featured in this film that were being advised by doctors to change their diet. This film took viewers along and saw the great progress these patients made. I also think the filmmaker did a great job at including pathos or emotional appeal. Not only was there information on health but they showed how real families are being negatively affected by poor diet and how eating a whole foods plant based diet has changed their lives and how their family views them.

    Another strong feature of the film was including Colin Campbell, a man who grew up on a dairy farm believing that animal products were a key part of a nutritious diet. He has grown up to advocate for a plant based diet and works to show others the negative affects of eating animal products. It was important to include this because it shows how one person learned from the