Green issues on the big screen

Published on Friday 12 June 2009 14:37

From the exploitation of Kenyan rose farmers to a Slovenian man fighting against pollution, this year's EIFF line-up proves there's more than enough film fodder for the eco-conscious among us.

With the term 'green' perhaps the only colour that's managed to successfully re-brand itself as a lifestyle in recent history, terms like organic, carbon footprint and bio-gas have firmly planted themselves into our vocabulary.

For anyone still needing an inspirational nudge in a greener direction, though, John Maringouin's Big River Man is an ideal place to start.

With the meddlesome, hands on approach of Jamie Oliver and the death-defying tactics of Bear Grylls, Big River Man follows the real-life story of Slovenian Martin Strel who has become devoted to swimming the world's biggest rivers in a bid to highlight the damage caused by pollution.

As a 53-year-old heavy drinker, Strel's light-hearted bid to swim the Amazon is as eccentric as it is heroic, while setting a new world record for the longest and most perilous swim.

With summer finally upon us, freshly cut flowers don't instantly spring to mind as a mechanism for oppression, let alone a catalyst for a human rights debate.

Tom Van Zantvoort's documentary a Blooming Business attempts to open up one such discussion with a look into the lives of Kenyan flower farmers who work relentlessly to meet unquenchable global demand.

As a handful of courageous workers come forward to share their experiences; talk of toxic chemicals, poor working conditions and exploitative wages gradually reveals the thornier truth lurking beneath the guise of the supermarket rose.

Big River Man, Cineworld, Fountain Park, Dundee Street, 18 June, 7.20pm; 19 June, 4.25pm, 8.50 (7.50).

Blooming Business, Cineworld, 21 June, 2.15pm; 24 June, 6pm, 8.50 (7.50), 0131-228 8788