I Could Never Go Vegan
In Thomas Pickering’s documentary, the case for veganism is put across in a way that will delight those already converted.
The title is hardly likely to deceive and was surely not intended to do so. This documentary feature from the Pickering Brothers - Thomas and James – is a work eager to promote veganism. Of the two of them Thomas makes the wider contribution being credited on his own as director, photographer and editor as well as being the narrator. He explains that his parents did not eat meat and that he is now anxious to explore the issues around veganism exploring the validity, or otherwise, of those who are dubious or critical about it. In taking this route he consciously adopts a friendly tone – he introduces himself not as Thomas but as Tom – and the film has a lively quality to it that is attractive. Nevertheless, it is quickly apparent which side Tom is on and vegan viewers will surely welcome what he offers here even if others may well be more questioning. For all that, this is good filmmaking with the editing playing a considerable role in its success even if the film ultimately comes to feel slightly overlong.
It is no surprise to find footage here in which doctors express their views but it's arguable that even more typical of I Could Never Go Vegan is the fact that it features people involved in sporting activities in order to emphasise that you can do demanding things and be robust while adopting a vegan diet. Thus, the film returns at intervals to the athlete Sophia Ellis in Edinburgh, to Mike Coppock running in Spain and to 84-year-old Paul Youd, a latecomer to veganism who runs nearer home in Somerset. But it's largely the doctors who endorse the vegan diet giving reasons for doing so, while elsewhere various questions are discussed. Is eating meat seen as masculine? Can taking up a vegan diet improve your sex life? Is it expensive to be vegan? Is vegan food tasty? (that last question comes up when a tasting group are asked to decide which items offered to them are vegan and which are not and the pay-off that follows is characteristic of the film’s informal tone).
Ably presented as all this is, when it is done in the context of a feature film promoting a clear viewpoint it is difficult not to feel that one is being lectured. That feeling is all the more apparent by the contrast that occurs when the Pickerings move on in the course of the movie to other areas which connect up with the issues around veganism but which are inherently powerful in their own right and less likely to be considered contentious. I Could Never Go Vegan is strongly opposed to factory farming, contains vivid footage about the treatment of pigs that will become bacon and warns against any presumption that free range eggs can readily be approved. It also references cruelty to cows when it comes to milking while also suggesting that fish is hardly a healthy food now on account of the amount of pollution that there is. Furthermore, the film is big on climate change stressing that environmental harm related to beef means that being vegan can help the health of the planet.
The strength of these particular scenes is such that it throws into relief the way in which the film regardless of being so heartfelt can nevertheless feel like a sell that has been spun out over 97 minutes. Perhaps some reduction in length would have helped. It’s also the case that although Sophie, Mike and Paul are pleasant company they are hardly relevant enough to justify the number of times that we return to them. But viewers already into veganism will surely be delighted to have a feature film expressing their chosen lifestyle in this way and, unless adamant about wanting more discussion with both pros and cons considered, many others will feel that the Pickering brothers have done a very good job indeed.
MANSEL STIMPSON
Featuring Thomas Pickering, Sophia Ellis, Mike Coppock, Paul Youd, Randal Plunkett, Melinde Joy, George Monbiot, Doug Maw, Rohini Bajekal, Minil Patel, Nitu Bajekał, George Newman, Ałan Desmond, Shireen Kassam, Rajiv Bajekal, Iain Tolhurst, Alice Brough.
Dir Thomas Pickering, Pro James Pickering and Thomas Pickering, Screenplay James Pickering and Thomas Pickering, Ph Thomas Pickering, Ed Thomas Pickering, Music Benjamin Squires.
Pickering Brothers/Lock the Tent Productions/Memphis James Pictures-Dartmouth Films.
97 Mins. UK. 2024. UK Rel: 19 April 2024. Cert. 12A.
