At a time in history when the FBI has deemed animal-rights activists the number-one domestic terrorist threat to the U.S., filmmaker Curt Johnson sets out to explore exactly how an organization such as PETA can possibly take precedence over the threat posed by Osama bin Laden and al-Qaida in a documentary film that aims to tell the truth about the people who defend the creatures that cannot speak for themselves. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
Perhaps the greatest service Johnson does is to turn the event that spurred him to make the film -- the FBI labeling animal rights activists the top domestic terrorist threat -- into a crucial dialogue.
Your Mommy Kills Animals lays things out with historical perspective, tracing the roots of both the animal welfare movement and animals rights activism to England.
That one can't quite decide if these charming men are heroes or villains is a mark of Johnson's calm, even approach to an issue seemingly fueled by emotions run amok.
Can't commit to an overview of the movement by looking at three groups or stick with the trial of the "SHAC 7." So an intriguing but too short tour of animal-rights issues is interrupted by a flatly chronicled court case.
Couldn't have arrived at a more timely moment, given the recent arrest of Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick on federal charges for hanging, drowning, electrocuting and beating dogs to death.
It's the best kind of documentary, in that if you're a thinking person it is nearly impossible to watch the movie without having your point of view challenged and questioned.
Considering the explosive nature of this topic, this was an amazingly even-handed look at the debate around animal rights and animal welfare. When it initially started out, I was afraid that this was going to be an animal rights/welfare opinion piece a la Michael Moore, but Curt Johnson really found a great balance
showing all sides of the issue. I don't know that it's necessarily going to sway anybody to one side or the other, but for anyone interested in the subject, this presents all sides in about as fair a light as you're going to find (except for the HSUS and PETA, who get raked over the coals, but they declined to be represented here). If I was a member of the SHAC 7, I'd be suing Pam Ferdin (former president of SHAC), I've got a feeling her shrill, self-righteous testimony at their trial probably did much damage to their case. And who knew that the Barbi twins were capable of some pretty thought-provoking intelligent conversation? All in all, a great primer on the issue and a good jumping-off point for anyone wanting to learn more about it.
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