I completely agree with the_oak and WildBillWriter in their assessments of this documentary. Being close to an alcoholic, it was difficult to watch at times, but it was worth it. I found myself asking a lot of questions i.e. which came first, the alcoholism or the isolation? Does it even really matter? With all of his struggles beginning as a young person, its a testament to the human spirit that he has fought on for so long. His story was moving, and he's easy to connect with, even though he sometimes tries to push everyone away. He's so authentically himself on camera; its amazing to watch. If you have any experience with farming, its easy to understand his anxiety of having a market for his goods and being responsible for so much, all day, every day.. I hope he's healed at least somewhat since this documentary.
7 Reviews
Honest documentary about one man, his farm and his soul
the_oak2 April 2018
Warning: Spoilers
The bravery of this man impressed me. He exposes himself totally in this documentary about the difficulties of running his farm in the midst of mental problems, struggling with drinking and living in the ruin of divorce and lost happiness. If you think that bravery is running away or solving things with being a macho man or by climbing to the top on the heads of your competitors, think again. This is real life, there are moments of happiness, but there are cracks (big), because that's how the light gets in (quote: Leonard Cohen).
Farm and Farm life up close
prince_c312 November 2021
Warning: Spoilers
Well, I usually watch something poignant and profound and something that lingers long after movie finish, I guess it's just Sunday late afternoon's mood.
So, when I see this title, I immediately play the documentary. Note that for almost 99% of the content I watch like movies and series and all, I always read IMDb reviews and ratings. But, why I play this documentary instantly because, I can relate to it, how? Well, first we friends purchased a ranch some 7 years back, and to be honest, before we own the ranch, we didn't have a clue about how beautiful they look for passers-by while traveling country side,but how much work, what kind of hard life it is, we only know when we live that life.
That's one the reason I played to see what does it present.
To my surprise it did show the harsh reality of farm life, farmer life and how hard they work, every day, in harsh weather.
Because, in farming, you constantly fight with one element, that is nature. People like me who lives in urban areas with a nice front yard and back yard, which mowed down by lawn mower every other week and the nice climate control house, never able to understand how hard is to fight the nature when it start taking over things, when you don't keep it in check.
Here we see a Peter, a genius, an eccentric, who spend almost all his life on his farm and entirely dedicated his life to farming. His knowledge is like an encyclopedia of farming. To be honest, while watching this documentary, I really feel like going to his farm spend a few months and get all his knowledge about farming.
At the top of that, I said he was an eccentric, because he pushed people away and now he is old, alcoholic and ALONE.
I know, how it felt to be in those big spaces which runs in acres, with just a few lights and a house with total silent and you don't have anyone to talk. I experience that, when I had to spend few nights in my farm unfortunately alone because I stuck there and at that time I feel the horrors of the night life of a farm when you're alone in the dark, with just your animals and acres of land.
I can't imagine how would Peter survives all those years alone in that farm? And that also explains his mental health issues and talking about committing suicide. During day time he was almost busy, but nights must be haunting for him unless he drunk himself to sleep.
The farm that looks so picturesque and beatutiful during the day, would be scary and haunting during nights.
The documentary potrait Peter and his farm which is like two bodies and one soul, you can take out Peter from the farm or farm out of Peter.
In the end, the documentary was really, sad, tragic, one person stuggle to keep everything together or in the process of having its own way, destroyed his own life by isolating himself from the world. Pushed the loved one away, though he was angry, having drinking problem and an eccentric personality, you still feel sad for him.
So, when I see this title, I immediately play the documentary. Note that for almost 99% of the content I watch like movies and series and all, I always read IMDb reviews and ratings. But, why I play this documentary instantly because, I can relate to it, how? Well, first we friends purchased a ranch some 7 years back, and to be honest, before we own the ranch, we didn't have a clue about how beautiful they look for passers-by while traveling country side,but how much work, what kind of hard life it is, we only know when we live that life.
That's one the reason I played to see what does it present.
To my surprise it did show the harsh reality of farm life, farmer life and how hard they work, every day, in harsh weather.
Because, in farming, you constantly fight with one element, that is nature. People like me who lives in urban areas with a nice front yard and back yard, which mowed down by lawn mower every other week and the nice climate control house, never able to understand how hard is to fight the nature when it start taking over things, when you don't keep it in check.
Here we see a Peter, a genius, an eccentric, who spend almost all his life on his farm and entirely dedicated his life to farming. His knowledge is like an encyclopedia of farming. To be honest, while watching this documentary, I really feel like going to his farm spend a few months and get all his knowledge about farming.
At the top of that, I said he was an eccentric, because he pushed people away and now he is old, alcoholic and ALONE.
I know, how it felt to be in those big spaces which runs in acres, with just a few lights and a house with total silent and you don't have anyone to talk. I experience that, when I had to spend few nights in my farm unfortunately alone because I stuck there and at that time I feel the horrors of the night life of a farm when you're alone in the dark, with just your animals and acres of land.
I can't imagine how would Peter survives all those years alone in that farm? And that also explains his mental health issues and talking about committing suicide. During day time he was almost busy, but nights must be haunting for him unless he drunk himself to sleep.
The farm that looks so picturesque and beatutiful during the day, would be scary and haunting during nights.
The documentary potrait Peter and his farm which is like two bodies and one soul, you can take out Peter from the farm or farm out of Peter.
In the end, the documentary was really, sad, tragic, one person stuggle to keep everything together or in the process of having its own way, destroyed his own life by isolating himself from the world. Pushed the loved one away, though he was angry, having drinking problem and an eccentric personality, you still feel sad for him.
Insightful, moving, and worth your time
WildBullWriter15 October 2017
I found this documentary on an organic farmer in Vermont who lives and farms alone in his latter years to be rich, moving, and informative. Surrounded by his beautiful acreage, he suffers all the same from loneliness, regret, and a sense of futility. Yet there are days when all 38 years of his efforts seem worth it. A fine character study, and an intriguing look at the life of a farmer in an age when most people live in urban settings and haven't a clue about what's involved in a life spent close to nature and the cycle of seasons.
Amazing.
Analog_Devotee13 February 2022
Having grown up on a farm and on/off worked in agriculture for most of my adult life, I'm always drawn to check these types of documentaries out, but often find myself moving on rather quickly due to the romanticization. Most are so far detached from reality it isn't even funny; all the good parts and none of the bad. None of penny-pinching that so often plagues small farming operations while the massive operations get bail-out after bail-out, commit insurance fraud out in the open to no consequences and so on and so forth.
There is no sugarcoating here. Peter is like if Charles Bukowski had decided to become a farmer instead of a writer. Similarities don't stop there -- Peter himself is quite the artist with painting, drawing, sculpturing and even poetry. He's eccentric and destructive -- and depressed to a sometimes grotesque degree.
I don't recommend it for those with uneasy stomachs. Or anyone with a meal in front of them, for that matter. But if you're at all interested in how an old alcoholic brimming with demons lives out his day-to-day in rural Vermont on a beautifully rustic, scenic farm, this is absolutely the documentary for you.
There is no sugarcoating here. Peter is like if Charles Bukowski had decided to become a farmer instead of a writer. Similarities don't stop there -- Peter himself is quite the artist with painting, drawing, sculpturing and even poetry. He's eccentric and destructive -- and depressed to a sometimes grotesque degree.
I don't recommend it for those with uneasy stomachs. Or anyone with a meal in front of them, for that matter. But if you're at all interested in how an old alcoholic brimming with demons lives out his day-to-day in rural Vermont on a beautifully rustic, scenic farm, this is absolutely the documentary for you.
Superb portrait of a fascinating eccentric
wavecat139 June 2019
Warning: Spoilers
This is what a low budget documentary about a fascinating eccentric can be. Peter is a 68 year old man, a hard worker who runs an animal farm in rural Vermont seemingly all by himself. The film acquaints us with a lot of aspects of farm life, especially the grittier, bloodier ones, e.g. slaughtering and skinning sheep, working closely with animals, helping them with pregnancies and births, dealing with predators like coyotes. Peter is a dramatic figure and seems right at home on camera, but as the film progresses we see that the guy has some serious problems. For starters he is an alcoholic, and he has been abandoned by his spouse and kids, and he frequently does not seem quite right emotionally. The guy making the movie (Tony Stone, I think) appears to be a younger relative of Peter. I found myself thinking quite a bit about Peter and his farm - despite his appalling behavior he is a unique and talented individual.
Peter becomes the farm
thomas-7540822 April 2019
A troubled alcoholic farmer lets his mind wander to an onlooking documentary team who film him in situ at his bucolic Vermont farm. Peter Dunning's ruminations range from the bitter to the bittersweet to the absurd. What's remarkable is how Tony Stone conveys the link between Dunning's worldview, which can oscillate from contentment to threats of suicide, as being inextricably linked to the physical and mental toils of the farm, and the weather which ranges from tundra to balmy sunshine. What lingers is Dunning's assertion that he is now fully bodily and spiritually connected to the farm, so much so that he has become the farm.
See also
Awards | FAQ | User Ratings | External Reviews | Metacritic Reviews
